"The Singapore market has shown that it's becoming far more liquid, and people also like having an exposure to the Singapore dollar, " a currency that has been favored by investors who like the city-state's political and economic stability, Mr. Crockett said.

WSJ: Mapletree Debut Sparks Hope for Singapore IPOs

Obama is also wrong to believe that his surge will buy enough time to inject stability into Afghanistan's state or society.

FORBES: Magazine Article

The second main reason for Qatar's political stability is that the country's nationals enjoy a range of generous state handouts, which have swelled under the rule of the current emir, Emir Hamad bin Khalifah Al Thani, who overthrew his father in 1995.

BBC: Qatar's delicate balancing act

It is noticeable that political stability in South East Asia's best governed state, Singapore, is not in question.

CNN: Vietnam and the Crisis

So long as Russia's economy was growing, consumer choice and stability gave the state legitimacy.

ECONOMIST: Modernising Russia

The Iraq NIE will look at sectarian violence, the stability of Iraq's government, economic trends and the state of the insurgency.

NPR: Timing of Iraq Intelligence Estimate Questioned

Clinton, who returned from Asia on Sunday after her first overseas trip as secretary of state, called North Korea's nuclear program "the most acute challenge to stability in northeast Asia" and has said there is a "testing period" at present about how diplomacy can move forward.

CNN: U.S. envoy for North Korea may visit Pyongyang

The building society's chief economist, Robert Gardner, said this stability reflected the "uncertain" state of the economy.

BBC: House prices are stabilising, says Nationwide