Defending the west / James Gow.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Gow, James.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Security, International.

World politics--21st century.

World politics.

Physical Description:

xi, 186 pages ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Cambridge ; Malden, MA : Polity, 2005.

Summary:

What is the West? Why does it need to be defended? From what, by whom, and how? These are thorny questions that international society must grapple with in order to meet the security challenges of the 21st Century. This book provides answers to these questions. In it, James Gow sends out a clarion call for a radical re-interpretation of the right of self-defence within the terms of international law and international politics.

The world is a wonderful, but dangerous place. There are any number of threats to peace and security, ranging from new forms of terrorism and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction to environmental degradation, famine and disease. Defending the West matters to everyone, regardless of colour, creed, or nationality. It matters to those who are seeking to destroy it as much as it does to those seeking to protect it. Defence of the West requires pre-emptive action, but it cannot be undertaken on a unilateral basis and outside the law. Instead of outlawing pre-emptive action, we must acknowledge that it is necessary and ensure that it can be taken in a framework of partnership and legitimacy.

Contents:

Pre-Emption: Real Need or Dangerous Fantasy? 3

Defining the West: Delineating the West 7

Defining the West: Defending the West 10

The Book 17

2 Theory 20

Realism and the Rest 20

Constructivist Realism 26

3 Order 37

The Post-Cold War Sovereignty Revolution 38

Stratified Stability: From Disorder to Order 44

Layering Stability: The Evolution of the Sovereign State System 47

Stratifying Stability: Borders and Beyond 53

4 Threats 59

Physical Threats 60

Stability Threats 71

5 Alliance 78

The Evolutionary Alliance 80

The Alliance Transformed 82

The European Dimension: Illusion, Invention and the Indispensable 87

The Euroatlantic Order 91

US Leadership, European Capability and Responsible Action 94

6 Partnership 99

Productive Partnership and Constructive Engagement 101

Partnership, Engagement and Stability 105

Strategic Flexibility: Operational and Political 112

7 Pre-emption 118

Iraq 2003: The Basis for Action and the Shadow of Pre-emption 120

New Bearings in Self-Defence for the Twenty-first Century: The Need for Pre-emption 123

Intelligence, Legitimacy and the Boundaries of the Self-Defence Revolution 131.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [165]-175) and index.

ISBN:

0745632343

0745632351

OCLC:

56658539