National Security Strategy of Belize The Strategic Environment The Contemporary International System Belize is in a unique position as the link between Central America and the Caribbean due to its strategic location as well as its historical and contemporary links to both regions. Belize is an active member of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the Central American Integration System (SICA). Though its near pristine environment and stable democracy are examples to both regions, increased population growth has led to challenges unanticipated only a few years ago. The lack of national and sectorspecific strategies to address current and developing concerns exacerbates these problems. However, the international political and economic system must first be clearly understood, since it provides the context within which Belize must design and implement its NSS. The international political system has evolved much over the course of the past one hundred years. The violence of the “Great War” in the early 20th Century had given rise to the hope that a multilateral international system would bring lasting peace to future generations. The subsequent failure of the League of Nations, which cleared the way for the Second World War and the horrors of the Holocaust, did not put an end to the hope that a multilateral system could bring peace to humankind. Unfortunately, for most of its existence the United Nations coincided with the Cold War during which time it was largely powerless to prevent the intra-state and inter-state violence that was in one form or another, related to the struggle between the two superpowers. The end of the Cold War has ushered in a new era for the international system. States are no longer the only international actors involved in the formulation and implementation of national and international policies. Inter-Governmental Organisations (IGOs), local and international Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), local and trans-national criminal organisations, and other sub-state and nonstate actors are now heavily involved in a variety of challenges to the sovereignty of states and the welfare of the people. Globalization and the increasing involvement of IGOs such as the United Nations and the OAS in maintaining international peace have made inroads into the anarchic international system. In the final analysis, though, every state remains ultimately responsible for its own existence. Organizations like the United Nations, established primarily to promote international peace, remain restricted by the extent to which its member states may wish to become involved. The Strategic Environment 6