This epitomizes the fundamental flaw in the idea of soft sovereignty. One group's dynamism promotes another's decline, feeding the desire for revenge and even terrorist acts by some of the victims of the system. The humanitarian cost is incalculable - but bearable for theoreticians far removed from the misery. For the West, the tariff is in large part financial, to limit political instability. There are, however, other costs of projecting force abroad.
Sovereignty is elusive in the absence of economic viability.
Even rich and lucky countries eventually have to negotiate the ever-changing global marketplace, trying to strike a balance between control and chaos. Such economic pressures tend to foster more representative government. The Council's oil-price symposium and John Page's related article offer current thinking on the need for reform and the hesitation to take the risks necessary for change. Much of the advice is interpreted as driven by the interests of the adviser. Even when it is not, it is often resented.