Deterring international terrorism and rogue states : US national security policy after 9/11 / James H. Lebovic.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Lebovic, James H.

Series:

Contemporary security studies

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

United States--Military policy.

United States.

Military policy.

National security--International cooperation.

National security.

Deterrence (Strategy).

Terrorism--Prevention--International cooperation.

Terrorism.

World politics--21st century.

World politics.

Physical Description:

xiii, 226 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm.

Place of Publication:

London ; New York : Routledge, 2007.

Summary:

This new study challenges the widely held view that many current US adversaries cannot be deterred, maintaining that deterrence should shape US policies toward so-called rogue states and terrorist groups. The book critically assesses the 'three pillars' of the Bush administration's national security policy: missile defense, which preoccupied the administration until 9/11; preemption, which became the US focus after the 9/11 attacks; and homeland security, which the administration embraced immediately in the aftermath of the attacks. James Lebovic argues that US policy has suffered because of severe deficiencies in US strategies. US policymakers promote defensive strategies when they should be emphasizing offensive ones, promote offensive strategies when they should be emphasizing defensive ones, and promote pre-emptive strategies when they should be relying upon threats to punish countries for acquiring or using illicit weaponry. Deterring International Terrorism and Rogue States ultimately establishes that inadequate offensive and defensive strategies have led US policymakers to pursue open-ended policies without adequate concern for resource trade-offs, overreach and unintended consequences. This book will be of great interest to students of US foreign policy, national and international security, terrorism and International Relations in general.

Contents:

1 Introduction: deterrence in a changing world 1

The contemporary policy debate 2

Deterrence: Cold War-era limitations 4

2 Viewing the present through the past 11

Constitutive concepts 11

Pivotal assumptions: rationality and non-rationality 17

Extending deterrence: the challenges to retaliatory policies 20

Compellence: the limits of deterrence 22

3 On the offensive against rogue states: punishment and denial strategies 26

Punishment: a counter-value strategy 27

Denial: "damage limitation" through preemption 44

Punishment and denial: economic sanctions 60

4 A defensive-denial strategy against rogue states: national missile defense 72

The "conditional" undeterred adversary 74

The coercive use of nuclear weapons 82

The offense-defense balance 87

Extended deterrence and defense 94

5 On the offensive against terrorists: punishment and denial strategies 104

Perspective 1 The rational, coherent actor 105

Perspective 2 The political context 116

Perspective 3 Organizational elements 131

6 A defensive-denial strategy against terrorists: homeland security 147

Terrorist capabilities to attack a target 149

Terrorist payoffs from an attack 153

Terrorist selection of targets to attack 158

Terrorist selection of the number of targets to attack 167

Conclusions and implications 170

7 Final thoughts: the strengths and limits of deterrence 177

Main conclusions 177

Maintaining perspective 181.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 198-213) and index.

ISBN:

0415771439

0415771447

OCLC:

69331775

Online:

Publisher description