No one likes nation-building. The public dismisses it. Politicians criticize it. The traditional military disdains it, and civilian agencies lack the blueprint necessary to make it work. Yet functioning states play a foundational role in international security and stability. Left unattended, ungoverned spaces can produce crises from migration to economic collapse to terrorism.

Our speaker, Keith W. Mines has taken part in nation-building efforts as a Special Forces officer, diplomat, occupation administrator, and United Nations official. In ‘Why Nation-Building Matters’ he uses cases from his own career to argue that repairing failed states is a high-yield investment in our own nation’s global future.

During his talk, Keith will also focus on his experiences in Afghanistan and current events there. He retired from the US State Department in 2019 after a career including interim Economic Counselor in Kabul in 2002 and Consul General in Mazar-e Sharif from 2012-13.