WASHINGTON, DC: August 27, 2018. (PCP) IDC applauds the introduction of S.3368, the Global Fragility and Violence Reduction Act of 2018, by Senators Chris Coons (D-DE), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Jeff Merkley (D-OR), Todd Young (R-IN), and Lindsey Graham (R-SC) in the United States Senate on August 22nd, 2018. This timely legislation would require the U.S. government - in collaboration with global civil society - to develop a 10-year strategy to bring down current levels of global violence and better address the root causes of violence, violent conflict, and fragility that drive recurrent global crises. S.3368 accompanies its companion, H.R.5273, that was introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Representatives Eliot Engel (D-NY), Ted Poe (R-TX), Michael McCaul (R-TX), Adam Smith (D-WA), Bill Keating (D-MA), and Paul Cook (R-CA) on March 14. The Global Fragility and Violence Reduction Act would require the U.S. Department of State, in partnership with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the U.S. Department of Defense, and other federal agencies, to develop a new strategy to reduce and prevent violent conflict. It would give the U.S. government the tools it needs for a long-term, coordinated approach to identify and mitigate the drivers of violence in order to prevent conflict. This timely legislation comes at a moment when violent conflict has forcibly displaced a record 68.5 million people and costs the world an estimated $14.76 trillion annually. There is an urgent need to improve the U.S. government's ability to reverse these trends and prevent future conflict.