Are borders the cause of problems in global politics or are they the solution?
In global politics, borders have and will always remain a defining element throughout history
which structure economies, form identities and continue to persist as an important
discussion within today's world. The present day nation-state system which arose from the
Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 outlined sovereignty as a key concept, emphasising the
importance of territorial borders. Nevertheless, whilst globalisation rapidly advances, borders
spark essential discussions about whether they are the underlying reason of global political
issues or instead a fundamental solution to solving international problems.
The concept of borders has hugely evolved over time in conjunction to historical changes in
political organisation. Throughout early civilization, societies functioned and were structured
around language or religious ties rather than severe territorial boundaries within today's
world. The emergence of the Westphalian system was a significant mark in history, which
paved the path away from these loose boundaries through pioneering the concept of
territorial sovereignty.
‘One primary function of borders, therefore, was to define and delineate the boundaries of
states—to describe the areas of legal jurisdiction and to indicate where states had rights and
responsibilities’ (Starr, 2006). Borders serve multiple purposes, from controlling the in and
outflow of goods and services, regulating migration and upholding safety regulations.
However, borders essence also creates structural tensions between societies leading to
problems such as forced displacement and socio economic divide.
Within this essay, it will explore the functions of borders in global politics, observing their
involvement towards conflict and stability. It examines how the concept of borders affects
economic inequality, nationalism as well as migration crises whilst also acting as a tool for
state sovereignty, ensuring security and preserving national identity. Through exploring
historical shifts and modern day examples this essay aims to establish whether borders are
the key cause of global political issues or an essential source for supporting international
governments
From a historical standpoint, over time, borders have stimulated nationalism and conflict
between states, causing violent clashes. Colonial powers ignored indigenous social
structures, causing long term instability. Post colonial states such as India and Pakistan
demonstrate these territorial disputes, significantly over Kashmir, in which religious divides
as well as conflicting nationalist narratives have sparked multiple wars and ever growing
military tensions. Similarly, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is also greatly rooted between
border disagreement and competing nationalities. The formation of Israel in 1948 resulted in
territorial conflict with surrounding Arab states, causing ongoing disputes around land
ownership and sovereignty. The green line, established after the 1949 armistice agreements,
still remains extremely contested.
When colonial borders were imposed in Africa during the Berlin conference in 1884,
‘European diplomats gathered in the grand drawing rooms of Berlin to divide the African
continent among themselves’, it completely ignored any previous ethnic or tribal boundaries
resulting in post colonial conflicts (Thompson, 2024). Without a single African representative
present, these men carved up Africa with little regard for its people, cultures, or histories.
Maps of the continent were unfurled on polished tables, and with the stroke of a pen, ancient
kingdoms were dismantled, ethnic groups divided, and borders drawn by those who had
never set foot on African soil (Thompson, 2024). The Nigerian civil War between 1970-1947
was fuelled by ethnic divides compounded by colonial-era border policies. Similar struggles
, can also be observed in Sudan and South Sudan where territorial controversies have
stimulated further conflict. Some of these examples not only display how borders demarcate
territorial limits but also promote and contribute to exclusion, stimulating hostility between
various groups through the division of artificial lines. These examples demonstrate how
borders, when drawn out without any consideration for any preexisting cultural and historical
realities, can divide divisions and instead fuel geopolitical tensions for the worse.
Borders also contribute humanitarian crises by restricting movement and worsening
conditions for refugees and stateless persons. The 1951 refugee convention aimed to
address these issues, however, state sovereignty as usual took priority over major
international humanitarian constraints. The 2015-2016 European Refugee Crisis
demonstrated how constructive border strategies can worsen human suffering and cause
political pressure between states. The Dublin regulation, which assigns asylum applications
to the first EU country of entry, placed enormous pressure towards border states like Greece
and Italy causing congested and cramped refugee camps. The ‘Human Rights Watch found
all three facilities to be severely overcrowded, with significant shortages of basic shelter and
filthy, unhygienic conditions. Long lines for poor quality food, mismanagement, and lack of
information contribute to the chaotic and volatile atmosphere’ (Human Rights Watch, 2016).
Furthermore, in the United States, policies such as Title 42 as well as the Migrant Protection
Protocols have been criticised as ‘public health experts stated that it put the health and well-
being of migrants at risk’ (Artiga, 2025).
In regions such as Myanmar, increased border control has worsened conditions for
Rohingya citizens. The 1982 citizenship law within Myanmar essentially refused Rohingya
Muslims legal admissions due to military crackdowns, ‘over 750,000 Rohingya fled to
Bangladesh following violent military crackdowns in Myanmar's Rakhine State (UNHCR,
2023). Additionally, statelessness remains a huge issue within the Dominican Republic,
where Haitian-descended populations have had their citizenship revoked, depriving them of
fundamental rights and possible legal exclusion.
Some examples illustrate how rigorous border policies can undermine human rights and
aggravate global migration problems. While borders are often seen as essential in
maintaining global and national security, they also intensify exclusionary practices that
marginalise endangered populations and deny individuals fundamental protection. The key
point of ‘forced migration’ underpins the vital question of whether borders in fact contribute
more towards global and national instability rather than governance and security.
Despite the issues discussed, borders persist as a crucial part of maintaining state
sovereignty, governance and security. They enable states to manage immigration and
maintain public order. Effective border policies in recent times have been significantly
associated with preventing serious transactional crimes such as drug smuggling, human
trafficking and terrorism, positively increasing public safety. In Mexico, ‘security efforts are
having a positive effect on public safety. Homicide rates in Juárez, a city historically plagued
by cartel violence, have dropped by a third in early 2025’ (Sixto, 2025). These early signs of
success in 2025 may demonstrate how Mexico's effective cooperation with the United States
is a ‘testament to the tangible results of Trump’s border policies’ showing how effective
border policies illustrate positive outcomes (Sixto, 2025).
Additionally, during global health crises such as COVID, border policies played a critical role
in managing public health as they restricted inflow and outflow of citizens preventing the
spread of infection. In a study conducted, ‘Six countries that shut down their borders were
evaluated’, ‘the number of COVID-19 cases dropped by 94.4%. The border shutdown policy
took around 13.2 days to show positive effects and lowered COVID-19 cases by 91.7% on
average by the end of February’ (Kang, 2020). Further, according to the World Health
In global politics, borders have and will always remain a defining element throughout history
which structure economies, form identities and continue to persist as an important
discussion within today's world. The present day nation-state system which arose from the
Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 outlined sovereignty as a key concept, emphasising the
importance of territorial borders. Nevertheless, whilst globalisation rapidly advances, borders
spark essential discussions about whether they are the underlying reason of global political
issues or instead a fundamental solution to solving international problems.
The concept of borders has hugely evolved over time in conjunction to historical changes in
political organisation. Throughout early civilization, societies functioned and were structured
around language or religious ties rather than severe territorial boundaries within today's
world. The emergence of the Westphalian system was a significant mark in history, which
paved the path away from these loose boundaries through pioneering the concept of
territorial sovereignty.
‘One primary function of borders, therefore, was to define and delineate the boundaries of
states—to describe the areas of legal jurisdiction and to indicate where states had rights and
responsibilities’ (Starr, 2006). Borders serve multiple purposes, from controlling the in and
outflow of goods and services, regulating migration and upholding safety regulations.
However, borders essence also creates structural tensions between societies leading to
problems such as forced displacement and socio economic divide.
Within this essay, it will explore the functions of borders in global politics, observing their
involvement towards conflict and stability. It examines how the concept of borders affects
economic inequality, nationalism as well as migration crises whilst also acting as a tool for
state sovereignty, ensuring security and preserving national identity. Through exploring
historical shifts and modern day examples this essay aims to establish whether borders are
the key cause of global political issues or an essential source for supporting international
governments
From a historical standpoint, over time, borders have stimulated nationalism and conflict
between states, causing violent clashes. Colonial powers ignored indigenous social
structures, causing long term instability. Post colonial states such as India and Pakistan
demonstrate these territorial disputes, significantly over Kashmir, in which religious divides
as well as conflicting nationalist narratives have sparked multiple wars and ever growing
military tensions. Similarly, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is also greatly rooted between
border disagreement and competing nationalities. The formation of Israel in 1948 resulted in
territorial conflict with surrounding Arab states, causing ongoing disputes around land
ownership and sovereignty. The green line, established after the 1949 armistice agreements,
still remains extremely contested.
When colonial borders were imposed in Africa during the Berlin conference in 1884,
‘European diplomats gathered in the grand drawing rooms of Berlin to divide the African
continent among themselves’, it completely ignored any previous ethnic or tribal boundaries
resulting in post colonial conflicts (Thompson, 2024). Without a single African representative
present, these men carved up Africa with little regard for its people, cultures, or histories.
Maps of the continent were unfurled on polished tables, and with the stroke of a pen, ancient
kingdoms were dismantled, ethnic groups divided, and borders drawn by those who had
never set foot on African soil (Thompson, 2024). The Nigerian civil War between 1970-1947
was fuelled by ethnic divides compounded by colonial-era border policies. Similar struggles
, can also be observed in Sudan and South Sudan where territorial controversies have
stimulated further conflict. Some of these examples not only display how borders demarcate
territorial limits but also promote and contribute to exclusion, stimulating hostility between
various groups through the division of artificial lines. These examples demonstrate how
borders, when drawn out without any consideration for any preexisting cultural and historical
realities, can divide divisions and instead fuel geopolitical tensions for the worse.
Borders also contribute humanitarian crises by restricting movement and worsening
conditions for refugees and stateless persons. The 1951 refugee convention aimed to
address these issues, however, state sovereignty as usual took priority over major
international humanitarian constraints. The 2015-2016 European Refugee Crisis
demonstrated how constructive border strategies can worsen human suffering and cause
political pressure between states. The Dublin regulation, which assigns asylum applications
to the first EU country of entry, placed enormous pressure towards border states like Greece
and Italy causing congested and cramped refugee camps. The ‘Human Rights Watch found
all three facilities to be severely overcrowded, with significant shortages of basic shelter and
filthy, unhygienic conditions. Long lines for poor quality food, mismanagement, and lack of
information contribute to the chaotic and volatile atmosphere’ (Human Rights Watch, 2016).
Furthermore, in the United States, policies such as Title 42 as well as the Migrant Protection
Protocols have been criticised as ‘public health experts stated that it put the health and well-
being of migrants at risk’ (Artiga, 2025).
In regions such as Myanmar, increased border control has worsened conditions for
Rohingya citizens. The 1982 citizenship law within Myanmar essentially refused Rohingya
Muslims legal admissions due to military crackdowns, ‘over 750,000 Rohingya fled to
Bangladesh following violent military crackdowns in Myanmar's Rakhine State (UNHCR,
2023). Additionally, statelessness remains a huge issue within the Dominican Republic,
where Haitian-descended populations have had their citizenship revoked, depriving them of
fundamental rights and possible legal exclusion.
Some examples illustrate how rigorous border policies can undermine human rights and
aggravate global migration problems. While borders are often seen as essential in
maintaining global and national security, they also intensify exclusionary practices that
marginalise endangered populations and deny individuals fundamental protection. The key
point of ‘forced migration’ underpins the vital question of whether borders in fact contribute
more towards global and national instability rather than governance and security.
Despite the issues discussed, borders persist as a crucial part of maintaining state
sovereignty, governance and security. They enable states to manage immigration and
maintain public order. Effective border policies in recent times have been significantly
associated with preventing serious transactional crimes such as drug smuggling, human
trafficking and terrorism, positively increasing public safety. In Mexico, ‘security efforts are
having a positive effect on public safety. Homicide rates in Juárez, a city historically plagued
by cartel violence, have dropped by a third in early 2025’ (Sixto, 2025). These early signs of
success in 2025 may demonstrate how Mexico's effective cooperation with the United States
is a ‘testament to the tangible results of Trump’s border policies’ showing how effective
border policies illustrate positive outcomes (Sixto, 2025).
Additionally, during global health crises such as COVID, border policies played a critical role
in managing public health as they restricted inflow and outflow of citizens preventing the
spread of infection. In a study conducted, ‘Six countries that shut down their borders were
evaluated’, ‘the number of COVID-19 cases dropped by 94.4%. The border shutdown policy
took around 13.2 days to show positive effects and lowered COVID-19 cases by 91.7% on
average by the end of February’ (Kang, 2020). Further, according to the World Health
