Researchers have calculated that since 3600 BC, there have been 14,531 wars resulting in 3 billion deaths over the years (current world population: 5 billion).  Peace prevailed for a total of only 292 years on earth, about 5% of the time.  If history is any guide, the four months a war is most likely to start are April, May, June, and July.  At any given time, it's a sure bet that there are anywhere from 50-100 wars going on somewhere in the world.  Most of them would be insurgencies or internal security problems, in places often described as "flashpoints," "hot spots," or "trouble spots" -- all synonymous language for the same thing -- political violence.  Some estimates put at 137 the number of civil wars during the period from 1820 to 1990 and at 16.2 million the death toll from civil wars fought after World War ii.  Between 1919 and 1997, there were over 500 spells of guerrilla warfare around the world. In the same period, close to 1,500 politically motivated assassinations or attempted assassinations of high government officials or politicians were committed — an average of one every three weeks (Singer & Small 1993; Fearon & Laitin 2003; Banks 2005).  

    The U.S. has not been inactive in the world's trouble spots.  Since the end of World War II, the United States has assisted in over 20 different coups (or regime changes) throughout the world, and is believed or suspected to be responsible or involved in about 12 assassinations of political heads of state (Blum 1995).  The U.S. has also launched many "interventions" or overseas operations to bring democracy and human rights to trouble spots.  An intervention can range from minor interference in the affairs of another country to a full-scale invasion and occupation, with a variety of military/humanitarian missions in-between.  Some interventions are for "show of force" or part of a psychological warfare operation, while the most difficult missions, it could be argued, are those that combine humanitarian and military operations.  Military humanitarianism is a rather complex (and controversial) subject that, by itself, has some potential to do well.  It is certainly in line with modern images of the professional, ethical soldier, but humanitarian intervention by itself or jointly with other supportive elements also has the potential to do well.  The United Nations has a somewhat spotty record on peacekeeping, and the U.S. can only do so much alone, unilaterally, without the support of the international community.  Hence, multilateral interventions exist and are deserving of study in their own right.

    A United Nations "peacekeeping" operation is defined by the U.N. as follows:    

• A field operation established by the Security Council, with the consent of the parties concerned, to help control and resolve conflicts between them, under UN command and control, at the collective expense of the member states, and with military and other personnel and equipment provided voluntarily by the member nations, acting impartially between the parties and using force to the minimum extent necessary.

    The United States, however, recognizes and practices a much broader variety of peacekeeping:

• Preventive preemption -- "show of force" deployments, interpositions, early warning strikes, stepped-up surveillance activities

• Denial of movement -- no-fly zones, blockades, safe haven denial, quaranteeing, sanctions enforcement

• Humanitarian relief -- escort and protection of relief agencies, logistics, infrastructure support and re-building

• Peace settlement -- demobilization, disarmament, demining, election monitoring

• Military civil assistance -- truce enforcement, restoring law and order, political trusteeship

    The differences between U.N. and U.S. notions of peacekeeping are significant.  While the U.N. simply looks at their job as keeping the two parties in conflict away from each other and monitoring a cease-fire (a rather strict view of the U.N. Charter), the U.S. goes way beyond that toward such ends as providing relief assistance to the population and rebuilding the infrastructure.  For example, it is not uncommon for America's military to do such things as build tent cities, distribute food, and set up hospitals and schools - things that once were the domain of NGOs (non-governmental organizations). 

A TOP TEN LIST OF WORLD TROUBLE SPOTS

1. China - an emerging military and economic superpower with a callous disregard for human rights. In 1997, they regained control of Hong Kong and have other expansionist ideas. They have made territorial claims on the Kuril islands and other strategic locations in the South China Sea, a body of water between the Philippines and Japan. China also claims Taiwan and Tibet, which it considers breakaway provinces. They appear to have mended fences with Russia concerning borders for now, but tensions run high between China and its neighbors. In short, the Chinese aspire to the domination of nothing less than the whole of Asia, and they have engaged in extensive military, technological, and nuclear buildup to accomplish that.

2. Korea - North Korea is a famine-ravished country with reactionary leaders who will stop at nothing to become a nuclear power. They buy low-level nuclear waste from Taiwan, and intelligence analysts believe that this waste can and will be refined into weapons-grade plutonium. The North fears the U.S. presence in South Korea (they are constantly expecting an attack), and any buildup of military forces in Japan (China also fears Japanese buildup), which the U.S. appears committed to because it doesn't want to keep supporting Japan's military. Also a sore spot to Korea and China is the 1996 Sydney Declaration incorporated countries like Vietnam, India, Burma, and Laos into ASEAN (a Pacific version of NATO). North Korean involvement in sponsoring terrorism or fomenting unrest in Africa is well-known.  

3. Iran - the most geostrategically located country in the world, at the crossroads between East and West, directly across from Saudi Arabia and Oman, and bordering or near the borders of Turkey, Russia, Afganistan, Pakistan, Iraq, Syria. The mullahs that run Iran have expressed the clear intent of creating an Islamic Iranian superstate and the use of martyrs to die for that fundamentalist cause.  Iran's dreams of expansionism pose a clear threat in the Middle East, and are constantly threatening to involve Turkey and Russia. Iran regards the Russian province of Azerbaijan as a breakaway province. Iran operates the largest navy in the Middle East. They regard the U.S. and all it stands for as demonic and satanic. They are the world's most active state sponsor of terrorism.  Iran has been attempting to build up its nuclear capabilities, and believe it or not, its abilities for electronic and computer espionage.  Iran supports, trains, and arms a variety of terrorist groups, primarily the Hizballah, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), and PKK/Kongra-Gel.  They are a safe haven country for terrorists who flee other countries.  

4. Cuba - a island just 90 miles off the tip of Florida, Castro's regime is not the superpower it once was, at least economically.  In recent years, it has embraced tourism as an economic activity, a fitting course of action since it always has and always will be a safe haven country for visiting and fleeing terrorists, mostly Latin American groups like the ETA, FARC, and ELN.  In addition, a number of anti-America terrorist organizations and U.S. refugees reside in Cuba.  

5. Iraq - having been badly damaged by the Gulf War, and completely decimated by Gulf War II, the Baghdad regime paid the ultimate price for continuing to defy U.N. inspections and resolutions, building up weapons of mass destruction, and supporting anti-American terrorism.  Iraq has long served as a safe haven country for many active and defunct terrorist groups, and since the U.S. invasion in 2003, things have changed, but keeping this crazy patchwork quilt of a country together is going to be difficult.

6. Libya - another country that has refused to abide by U.N. rules and regulations, and has been involved in terrorist incidents worldwide, such as airplane and discotheque bombings as far away as Scotland and Germany.  Libya directly supported the Abu Nidal organization (ANO), the PIJ, and the PFLP-GC.  It curbs some of those ties when in the spotlight for it, but immediately renews those ties once any pressure is off.  In 2004, it renounced its efforts to obtain weapons of mass destruction, and currently seems to be moving in a more pro-U.S. direction. 

7. Sudan - the safe haven meeting place for world terrorists, in this country, you'll find offices for just about any terrorist group in the world.  Sometimes, it is used as a base of operations, but most of the time, it's where training, indoctrination, finance, documentation, and transshipment of terrorism takes place.  The Sudanese people themselves are fundamentalist activists, which means that there's no moderate voice in the country, even among the small Christian minority.  Soldiers are always rebelling against something, especially in the South.

8. Syria - a closed, tightly-run society that effectively covers up the way it supports terrorism, but regular sightings of training camps can be had, especially in the Beka Valley, which is technically part of Lebanon, but under Syrian control.  Syria is quick to join and participate in Western coalitions, but does so as it suits their own interests, which are to extend the Syrian order throughout Lebanon.  Most of the propaganda that flies around the Middle East is manufactured in Syria.  

9. CIS - the Commonwealth of Independent States, which is different from the RF (Russian Federation) or FSU (Former Soviet Union) is a veritable bottomless pit of ethnic and territorial rivalries. Once held together by Soviet might, this conglomeration of new nations will most likely produce trouble for at least the next hundred years. Take the Transcaucasus region, for example, and try to figure out who owns Nagorno-Karabakh, much less who controls the flow of oil from the Caspian Sea. Armenia and Azerbaijan (among other former Soviet satellites) have been sabre-rattling recently.

10. Philippines - technically an ally of the U.S., this troubled archipelago nation typifies the ambiguities of American foreign policy in the Far East.  They kicked us off our Subic Bay base, but still want our military protection, making it unclear if our defense treaties with them (or anybody else in the region) are still binding.  They need help. China is only 200 miles away with expansionist plans, and this ethnically diverse country has more ethnic insurgents and liberation fronts than it can handle.  It also houses international terrorists, such as the Abu Sayyaf group. It seems to be a seedbed for newly emerging groups that haven't got a name yet.

THE SUPERPOWERS AND WORLD AFFAIRS

    Currently, the world contains five (5) "superpowers", sometimes referred to as the "Gang of Five" -- The United States, Russia, Europe (EU), China, and Japan.  Economy counts as much as military in determining superpower status. The EU has NATO, probably the world's most efficient military force. The Gang of Five dominate world affairs, and will probably continue to do so for the foreseeable future.

    Worldwide violence is driven, in part, by the arms market. The international trade in weapons doesn't leave the clearest paper trail, but it's commonly known that you can buy anything from anybody in this business. Bolivia is a major conduit and transshipment center in black market arms trading. The remains of the Soviet Union's arsenal is for sale to anyone with hard currency. The French have historically demonstrated a willingness to sell to anybody, and so have the Belgians, at least in small arms, a specialty of theirs. Two economic forces in the arms market are hybridization and customization. Both involve combining parts of weapons systems from one manufacturer or national entity with parts from another manufacturer or entity. French computers combined with Russian radar are a hot hybrid item, and MiG fighters, of course, are customizable. Increasingly sophisticated weaponry is finding its way onto the arms market, and into the hands of nonstate organizations (like terrorists and criminals). Here's a table of the biggest exporters and importers on the arms market:

A LIST OF NATIONS INVOLVED IN WAR

    Israel, a representative democracy, has been involved in six major wars (Independence, Suez, Six-Day, Attrition, October, and Lebanon), an ongoing internal security campaign (Palestinians), one or two "accidents" involving foreign ships, and numerous "punitive", "rescue", "protective", and "preventive" operations.  Israel justifies its wars as a matter of self-defense.

    India, a constitutional democracy, has been involved in four major wars (three with Pakistan, one with China), one "peacekeeping" operation (Sri Lanka), four forced annexations (Hyderabad, Kashmir, Sikkim, and Goa), one "liberation" (Maldives), and five internal security problems (Kashmir, Mizo, Nagas, Bodos, and Sikhs), although it would be wrong to insinuate that the Sikhs are presently an internal security problem since India's military is composed primarily of Sikh Commanders.  India justifies its wars by saying it's a matter of reacting with force after being attacked first.

    Egypt has been involved in six wars (five with Israel, one with Yemen), two "rescue missions" (Cyprus and Malta), one "training" mission (Western Sahara), and one "border incident" (Libya).  Egypt justifies its wars on the basis of revolutionary nationalism (Nasserism) which sees Egypt's role as defending the Arab world against imperialism and Zionism.

    Iraq has been involved in four major wars (three with Israel, one with Iran), several "border incidents" (Kuwait, Syria, Turkey, Iran), an internal security campaign ( Kurds), one incident with a foreign ship (USS Stark), one revolution, and several coups.  Iraq is currently being rebuilt.

    Pakistan has been involved in four major wars (three with India, one with Bangladesh), a series of border incidents (Afghanistan), one "advisory mission" (Oman), an internal security problem (Baluchis), and several coups.  Pakistan tends to follow a military, expansionist line (with constant hate toward India) based, in part, on a belief that it is the true heir to Muslim tradition-guarding in the region (the two-state theory of the partition).

    The United States, since WWII, has been involved in two major wars (Korea, Vietnam), one "liberation" (Grenada), five "peacekeeping" operations (Dominican Republic, Lebanon twice, the Gulf, Kosovo), one "accident" involving a foreign airliner, a series of "incidents" (Libya), two "rescue missions" (Mayaguez and Iran), one "drug bust" (Panama), and two expeditionary missions in the war on terrorism (Afghanistan and Iraq).

    Russia has been involved in two major wars (Hungary and Afghanistan), one "liberation" (Czechoslovakia), two "peacekeeping" operations (Berlin and Poland), several insurrections (the Baltics, Ukraine, Armenia, Checknya), a "volunteer expedition" (Iran), a series of "border incidents" (China), and a number of "accidents" involving foreign aircraft.

TABLE OF ONGOING WORLD CONFLICTS

TABLE OF CONFLICTS LIKELY TO RESTART

ADDENDUM: THE HISTORY OF WAR: LAST 1000 YEARS

INTERNET RESOURCES
ABCNews World HotSpots 
Bibliography on U.S. Military Operations
International Boundary Consultants
Let's Not Intertwine Humanitarian and Military Missions
List of Military Missions, Operations, and Projects
Military Humanitarianism and the New Peacekeeping
Military Intelligence Web: Recent Military/Peacekeeping Operations
Nationmaster Database (All Nations with WMD capability)
RAND Report: Thinking about U.S. Military Missions (pdf)