Replication Data for: Border Barriers and Local Armed Conflict

How do physical border barriers affect armed conflicts in builder states? The recent upsurge in border fortifications warrants a closer look at this question. The paper argues that border barriers make builder states less likely to experience a domestic armed conflict. They weaken cross-border support networks that bolster rebels’ ability to challenge governments militarily. They do so by limiting rebels’ access to foreign support such as arms, training, and cross-border sanctuary or by raising their costs of using non-state groups and transnational networks for that purpose. Cross-national statistical analysis from 1975-2009 and numerous case evidence strongly support the argument. A causal mediation analysis shows that border barriers’ effects are independent of state capacity. The paper speaks to states’ adaptive agency vis-`a-vis international and transnational actors in promoting territorialization and domestic political order amidst the new challenges of a globalized world.