The humanitarian transformation: Expanding global intervention capacity

Although the threat of mass casualty terrorism has altered strategic priorities in the United States, the global community as a whole faces many of the same problems that it faced in the 1990s: civil wars; failed or failing states; and other humanitarian disasters around the world. The gap between the demands on the international community to do something about these catastrophes and its ability to respond remains wide. The challenge to create a truly global capacity for peacekeeping and humanitarian intervention is difficult, but not so daunting or expensive as to excuse inaction. With minimal investments, which would primarily entail states shifting military resources and force structures towards more useful ends, superior global capabilities to make a difference are achievable.