Making War and Building Peace: United Nations Peace Operations [Paperback]

Michael W. Doyle (Author), Nicholas Sambanis (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 069112275X | ISBN-13: 978-0691122755 | Publication Date: May 15, 2006

Making War and Building Peace examines how well United Nations peacekeeping missions work after civil war. Statistically analyzing all civil wars since 1945, the book compares peace processes that had UN involvement to those that didn't. Michael Doyle and Nicholas Sambanis argue that each mission must be designed to fit the conflict, with the right authority and adequate resources. UN missions can be effective by supporting new actors committed to the peace, building governing institutions, and monitoring and policing implementation of peace settlements. But the UN is not good at intervening in ongoing wars. If the conflict is controlled by spoilers or if the parties are not ready to make peace, the UN cannot play an effective enforcement role. It can, however, offer its technical expertise in multidimensional peacekeeping operations that follow enforcement missions undertaken by states or regional organizations such as NATO. Finding that UN missions are most effective in the first few years after the end of war, and that economic development is the best way to decrease the risk of new fighting in the long run, the authors also argue that the UN's role in launching development projects after civil war should be expanded.

Editorial Reviews

Review

This book will have wide appeal not only among scholars who study the issues of civil war, its termination, and the role of the UN and the international community, but also among any students and policymakers who are interested in one of the most fundamental and pressing questions of our time: how to build peace in states that are trying to recover from devastating civil wars. -- Lise Howard, Review of International Organizations

Review

A balanced assessment of the record of United Nations peace operations. It provides encouraging insights into the future role of the United Nations in helping countries make the transition from war to peace.
(Kofi A. Annan, Secretary-General of the United Nations ) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 400 pages
• Publisher: Princeton University Press (May 15, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 069112275X
• ISBN-13: 978-0691122755
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #191,633 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Overview of the UN's Attempts at Peace Operations, May 28, 2008

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Bomb Man58 - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Making War and Building Peace: United Nations Peace Operations (Paperback)

Professors Michael Doyle and Nick Sambanis have 'tag-teamed' to present an excellent reference work on the UN's attempts at Peace operations. Earlier works have set the scene in an introductory fashion, however this book examines in methodical detail why certain UN peace operations have succeeded and others have not been so successful.

The authors use extensive data and quantitative measures in order to examine every civil war since the end of the Second World War to establish why conflicts occur. I was particularly impressed at the level of statistical analysis employed; especially their concept of the 'Triangle of Peace'to examine such variables as the degree of hostility, local capacities in the country involved in conflict and how international capacities assist in the post-conflict processes.

The data supports the authors' arguments that the UN is not so good at attempting to enter existing conflicts in a bid to try and stop them. The UN seems more suited at provision of various support specialities in rebuilding after the conflict is over. The authors also provide extensive comparison of UN Missions operating under Chapter Seven and Six of the UN Charter. They contend that a UN Mission is successful only when supported with a good mandate and adequate resources. Comparison of the successes (East Timor and Cambodia) are contrasted with not-so-successful ventures such as Somalia, Rwanda and Cyprus.

I recommend this book to the student of UN peace operations, as well as researchers of this topic, as the authors give substantial data and research methodology techniques in their outline of the various case studies contained within. My one dismay in this book is that, even though it was released two years ago, it does not cover the more recent Missions such as Ethiopia-Eritrea and Sudan. An updated edition is hoped for!

In summary, a great referral source; rich in data and references. Good, authorative explanations on UN peace operations with a wealth of detail and additional reading sources cited in the bibliography contained at the back of the book. Well done, Professors Doyle and Sambanis!