In Libya and Yemen, two Arab countries that are experiencing complicated, slow-motion transitions to more representative and accountable rule, we can clearly see a structural issue of troubled statehood that may also bedevil other Arab countries.

As Libya and Yemen move ahead with plans to draft new national constitutions, they remain threatened by destabilizing regional tensions, including armed clashes and threats by certain regions or tribal groups to break away from the state.

The government said Monday that the Libyan navy had seized one tanker that was leaving the rebel-controlled port of Sidra with $36 million worth of crude oil destined for international sales outside the control of the Libyan National Oil Company.

The constitutional processes through which Libya and Yemen are still trying to navigate are the best antidote to this troubling legacy of frail states held together by dictatorial central authorities – usually comprising a family with hundreds of thousands of armed guards, as Libya and Yemen were under their former rulers.