International Organisations and Peace Enforcement: The Politics of International Legitimacy

Description

What distinguishes a peace enforcement operation from an invasion? This question has been asked with particular vehemence since the US intervention in Iraq, but it faces all military operations seeking to impose peace in countries torn by civil war. This book highlights the critical role of international organisations (IOs) as gatekeepers to international legitimacy for modern peace enforcement operations. The author analyses five operations launched through four IOs: the ECOWAS intervention in Liberia, the SADC operations in the Democratic Republic of Congo and Lesotho, the NATO Kosovo campaign and the UN intervention in East Timor. In all these campaigns, lead states sought IO mandates primarily to establish the international legitimacy of their interventions. The evidence suggests that international relations are structured by commonly accepted rules, that both democratic and authoritarian states care about the international legitimacy of their actions, and that IOs have a key function in world politics.

Katharina P. Coleman is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of British Columbia.

'In terms of its organization, sophistication and use of detail to illuminate a big and important question, this book is a model of how it should be done. It provides a comprehensive and compelling answer to the question it addresses ... an important contribution to our understanding of peace enforcement and the relationship between states and international organizations more generally.' International Affairs