Florian Weigand
Biographic Data
| ID | 4134827 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Florian Weigand |
| GIVEN NAMES | Florian |
| FAMILY NAME | Weigand |
| SIGNATURE | WEIGAND F |
| AFFILIATIONS | London School of Economics and Political Science |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-2629-0934 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 12 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 36 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 12 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2017 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Ambiguity Politics
Most studies on modern state formation assume that enhanced state capacity and institutionalization increase clarity and predictability. We argue that this view fails to consider ambiguity politics—a form of governance in which formal and informal institutions are inconsistent, unclear, or ill-defined, thereby creating space for multiple interpretations, practices, and procedures. Combining inductive insights from research in Taliban-controlled A…
The Politics of Passage
Roadblocks, or checkpoints, are obligatory passage points that are erected by entities claiming authority over a given crossing. They are often the most common everyday interface between civilians and armed actors in conflict‐affected contexts, but are overlooked in studies on either trade or authority amidst conflict. This article, which introduces a special issue on the topic, argues that roadblocks are a useful empirical entry point to questio…
Agency during Armed Conflict
The paper looks at the relationship between ordinary people and competing authorities during armed conflict. In particular, the paper investigates the sources of agency that enable civilians to engage with armed actors, for instance, to ensure their own protection. The analysis rests on extensive fieldwork conducted in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, where the Arakan Army (AA), the armed wing of the United League of Arakan (ULA), was in active conflict …
How the Taliban Are Losing the Peace in Afghanistan
Afghanistan’s Taliban are back in power. How did they get there? How can their discriminatory policies be explained? And what can be done about it? The article looks back at the failure of international engagement in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021 and the dynamics that enabled the Taliban to reemerge. Having gained control of the country again in August 2021, the article unpacks the way they govern and control populations, how decisions are made w…
Beyond Greed
Based on a review of the diverse practices of how armed groups tax, we highlight that a full account of why armed groups tax needs to go beyond revenue motivations, to also engage with explanations related to ideology, legitimacy, institution building, legibility and control of populations, and the performance of public authority. This article builds on two distinct literatures, on armed groups and on taxation, to provide the first systematic exp…
Waiting for Dignity
The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling
The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling offers a comprehensive survey of interdisciplinary research related to smuggling, reflecting on key themes, and charting current and future trends. Divided into six parts and spanning over 30 chapters, the volume covers themes such as mobility, borders, violent conflict, and state politics, as well as looks at the smuggling of specific goods – from rice and gasoline to wildlife, weapons, and cocaine. Chapters e…
Channeling Contraband
Although smuggling is commonly assumed to happen in remote and difficult-to-access borderlands, in reality, smuggling is most prevalent in areas that states tightly control, including at formal border crossings. To understand this puzzle, this article explores the relationship between states and smugglers at international borders. Based on extensive empirical research in various borderlands in North Africa and Southeast Asia, it argues that diffe…
Conflict and Transnational Crime
Introduction 1 2 Underground struggle & licence to smuggle: the Thailand-Malaysia border region 21 3 Meth & militias: the Myanmar-China border region 43 4 International crisis & instant coffee: the Bangladesh-Myanmar border region
The Taliban's War for Legitimacy in Afghanistan
The Taliban are no longer a shadowy insurgency; they are now a full-fledged parallel political order
Institutionalized Intervention
Afghanistan has come to be seen as emblematic of the security threats besetting peace and security operations, and in this article we consider the response to such threats via the ‘bunkering’ of international staff. Drawing on an in-depth qualitative survey with aid and peacebuilding officials in Kabul, we illustrate how seemingly mundane risk management procedures have negative consequences for intervening institutions; for the relation between …
Afghanistan’s Taliban – Legitimate Jihadists or Coercive Extremists
The military intervention in Afghanistan in 2001 was portrayed as a fight to oust the extremist Taliban. But the Taliban have long been regaining influence, with the military victory of the Afghan government and its foreign allies now seeming less likely than ever. In light of these developments, this article investigates what the affected people – rather than the foreign interveners – think about the Taliban, and whether they perceive them as co…
Afghanistan’s Taliban – Legitimate Jihadists or Coercive Extremists
The military intervention in Afghanistan in 2001 was portrayed as a fight to oust the extremist Taliban. But the Taliban have long been regaining influence, with the military victory of the Afghan government and its foreign allies now seeming less likely than ever. In light of these developments, this article investigates what the affected people – rather than the foreign interveners – think about the Taliban, and whether they perceive them as co…
Institutionalized Intervention
Afghanistan has come to be seen as emblematic of the security threats besetting peace and security operations, and in this article we consider the response to such threats via the ‘bunkering’ of international staff. Drawing on an in-depth qualitative survey with aid and peacebuilding officials in Kabul, we illustrate how seemingly mundane risk management procedures have negative consequences for intervening institutions; for the relation between …
Beyond Greed
Based on a review of the diverse practices of how armed groups tax, we highlight that a full account of why armed groups tax needs to go beyond revenue motivations, to also engage with explanations related to ideology, legitimacy, institution building, legibility and control of populations, and the performance of public authority. This article builds on two distinct literatures, on armed groups and on taxation, to provide the first systematic exp…
Channeling Contraband
Although smuggling is commonly assumed to happen in remote and difficult-to-access borderlands, in reality, smuggling is most prevalent in areas that states tightly control, including at formal border crossings. To understand this puzzle, this article explores the relationship between states and smugglers at international borders. Based on extensive empirical research in various borderlands in North Africa and Southeast Asia, it argues that diffe…
Afghanistan’s Taliban – Legitimate Jihadists or Coercive Extremists
The military intervention in Afghanistan in 2001 was portrayed as a fight to oust the extremist Taliban. But the Taliban have long been regaining influence, with the military victory of the Afghan government and its foreign allies now seeming less likely than ever. In light of these developments, this article investigates what the affected people – rather than the foreign interveners – think about the Taliban, and whether they perceive them as co…
The Taliban's War for Legitimacy in Afghanistan
The Taliban are no longer a shadowy insurgency; they are now a full-fledged parallel political order
Institutionalized Intervention
Afghanistan has come to be seen as emblematic of the security threats besetting peace and security operations, and in this article we consider the response to such threats via the ‘bunkering’ of international staff. Drawing on an in-depth qualitative survey with aid and peacebuilding officials in Kabul, we illustrate how seemingly mundane risk management procedures have negative consequences for intervening institutions; for the relation between …
Conflict and Transnational Crime
Introduction 1 2 Underground struggle & licence to smuggle: the Thailand-Malaysia border region 21 3 Meth & militias: the Myanmar-China border region 43 4 International crisis & instant coffee: the Bangladesh-Myanmar border region
The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling
The Routledge Handbook of Smuggling offers a comprehensive survey of interdisciplinary research related to smuggling, reflecting on key themes, and charting current and future trends. Divided into six parts and spanning over 30 chapters, the volume covers themes such as mobility, borders, violent conflict, and state politics, as well as looks at the smuggling of specific goods – from rice and gasoline to wildlife, weapons, and cocaine. Chapters e…
Channeling Contraband
Although smuggling is commonly assumed to happen in remote and difficult-to-access borderlands, in reality, smuggling is most prevalent in areas that states tightly control, including at formal border crossings. To understand this puzzle, this article explores the relationship between states and smugglers at international borders. Based on extensive empirical research in various borderlands in North Africa and Southeast Asia, it argues that diffe…
Beyond Greed
Based on a review of the diverse practices of how armed groups tax, we highlight that a full account of why armed groups tax needs to go beyond revenue motivations, to also engage with explanations related to ideology, legitimacy, institution building, legibility and control of populations, and the performance of public authority. This article builds on two distinct literatures, on armed groups and on taxation, to provide the first systematic exp…
Waiting for Dignity
How the Taliban Are Losing the Peace in Afghanistan
Afghanistan’s Taliban are back in power. How did they get there? How can their discriminatory policies be explained? And what can be done about it? The article looks back at the failure of international engagement in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2021 and the dynamics that enabled the Taliban to reemerge. Having gained control of the country again in August 2021, the article unpacks the way they govern and control populations, how decisions are made w…
Agency during Armed Conflict
The paper looks at the relationship between ordinary people and competing authorities during armed conflict. In particular, the paper investigates the sources of agency that enable civilians to engage with armed actors, for instance, to ensure their own protection. The analysis rests on extensive fieldwork conducted in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, where the Arakan Army (AA), the armed wing of the United League of Arakan (ULA), was in active conflict …
Ambiguity Politics
Most studies on modern state formation assume that enhanced state capacity and institutionalization increase clarity and predictability. We argue that this view fails to consider ambiguity politics—a form of governance in which formal and informal institutions are inconsistent, unclear, or ill-defined, thereby creating space for multiple interpretations, practices, and procedures. Combining inductive insights from research in Taliban-controlled A…
The Politics of Passage
Roadblocks, or checkpoints, are obligatory passage points that are erected by entities claiming authority over a given crossing. They are often the most common everyday interface between civilians and armed actors in conflict‐affected contexts, but are overlooked in studies on either trade or authority amidst conflict. This article, which introduces a special issue on the topic, argues that roadblocks are a useful empirical entry point to questio…
Political science (9 works) · Sociology (8 works) · Politics (7 works) · Law (6 works) · Political economy (5 works) · Politics and Conflicts in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Middle East (5 works) · Peacebuilding and International Security (4 works) · Computer Science (3 works) · Economics (3 works) · Law (3 works)