ABSTRACT
In the history of the modern state system there is a case to be made that the primary function of national borders has been to act as a line of defense or as a deterrence against external aggression from other states and thus preserve the state itself. The French government’s construction of the Maginot Line along its eastern frontier in the 1930s is one – ultimately futile – example of the attempt to construct a border that could serve this purpose. The fortified border between North and South Korea is a modern day example.
