Humanitarian Military Intervention: The Conditions for Success and Failure [Hardcover]

Taylor B. Seybolt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 29, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0199252432 | ISBN-13: 978-0199252435

Humanitarian Military Intervention: The Conditions for Success and Failure is a thoughtful study of the conditions that determine if and how military intervention is a justified policy response to a humanitarian crisis in a foreign state. The book draws valuable lessons from case studies of operations in six countries that took place during the 1990s about how the prospects of success in a humanitarian military intervention can be evaluated-and how they can be improved. It also presents an original and comprehensive framework for defining and measuring success of past and future interventions, which centers on estimating the number of lives saved.

Humanitarian Military Intervention: The Conditions for Success and Failure is aimed not only at researchers on peace and conflict but also at policymakers, practitioners and anyone else struggling with the imperative-and the many dilemmas-of saving human lives from armed violence.

Editorial Reviews

Review

`Review from previous edition Seybolt rejects the majority of abstract, philosphical literature on the subject, to focus on real problems, faced by real practitioners both in theatre and in the halls of power. Military intervention in the name of humanity will remain a central policy challenge in the near future, and Seybolt's work succeeds in providing valuable new insights for practitioners at both ends of the spectrum. [The] Interesting case studies are well researched and a pleasure to read.' ' Matthew Taylor, consultant in NATO's Public Diplomacy Division --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

About the Author

Taylor B. Seybolt is an assistant professor at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public and International Affairs. In 2002-2008 he was a Senior Program Officer at the United States Institute of Peace. From 1999 to 2002 he was the Leader of the SIPRI Conflicts and Peace Enforcement Project.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 312 pages
• Publisher: Oxford University Press (March 29, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0199252432
• ISBN-13: 978-0199252435
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,543,732 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Assessment of Strategies for Intervening to Save Lives, April 7, 2007

By 

JGS (Washington, DC United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Humanitarian Military Intervention: The Conditions for Success and Failure (Hardcover)

While the crisis in Darfur continues to elicit calls by NGOs, activists, and scholars to "do something," the actual options for military action in response to mass violence remain murky and poorly explored. Taylor Seybolt has done a great service in this rich exploration and assessment of the actual strategies available to outside actors seeking to intervene in humanitarian crises. Through careful analysis of humanitarian interventions in 6 conflict zones throughout the 1990s, Mr. Seybolt helps illuminate the prospects and challenges of 4 distinct intervention strategies. In doing so, he sheds some much needed light on the options available to those seeking to intervene in defense of civilians at risk, and provides guidance on the conditions necessary to translate 'good intentions' into 'good results.' While this analysis raises many cautions for would-be interveners, it also helps to provide some welcome clarity on how to 'do something' in a manner that succeeds in saving strangers from violence, starvation, and mass atrocities. An all around excellent and compelling read!