Coping with Conflict after the Cold War (Perspectives on Security)

This volume provides answers to the question of how the international community might cope with armed conflict after the Cold War. It identifies key actors--states and international organizations--that have the resources and (potentially) the will to address the problems of continuing violence and enduring conflicts. The book also evaluates the roles and strategies that might be adopted by these actors, unilaterally or cooperatively, to ease or end such armed struggles.

The authors review the role of the United States, Russia, Japan, and China, all of which have the potential to play constructive roles in resolving conflicts. They also explore the contributions that the United Nations, the European Community, and other transnational organizations can make to building a more peaceful and secure world. Instead of appealing to grand theory as a guide for coping, the authors conclude, different mixes of actors, resources, roles, and strategies will have to be fashioned to meet the special needs of each conflict. Coping is viewed as an international imperative and not as the responsibility or prerogative of any one actor. The volume will be of interest to anyone concerned with international relations, international organizations, and security issues.

Contributors are Arthur J. Alexander, Mohammed Ayoob, Nicole Ball, Paul F. Diehl, Roger E. Kanet, Samuel S. Kim, Edward A. Kolodziej, Edward J. Laurence, David F. Linowes, Patrick M. Morgan, Jack Snyder, Janice Gross Stein, and I. William Zartman.

Edward A. Kolodziej is research professor in the Department of Political Science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Along with Roger Kanet he is the editor of The Limits of Soviet Power in the Developing World: Thermidor in the Revolutionary Struggle and The Cold War as Cooperation: Superpower Cooperation in Regional Conflict Management both published by Johns Hopkins. Roger E. Kanet is associate vice-chancellor for academic affairs and director of international programs and studies, as well as professor of political science, at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.