Coercion: The Power to Hurt in International Politics

Summary

From the rising significance of non-state actors to the increasing influence of regional powers, the nature and conduct of international politics has arguably changed dramatically since the height of the Cold War. Yet much of the literature on deterrence and compellence continues to draw (whether implicitly or explicitly) upon assumptions and precepts formulated in—and predicated upon—politics in a state-centric, bipolar world.

Coercion moves beyond these somewhat hidebound premises and examines the critical issue of coercion in the twenty-first century, with a particular focus on new actors, strategies and objectives in this very old bargaining game. The chapters in this volume examine intra-state, inter-state, and transnational coercion and deterrence as well as both military and non-military instruments of persuasion, thus expanding our understanding of coercion for conflict in the twenty-first century.