Preventive Diplomacy: Stopping Wars Before They Start

The suppression of war has been the primary objective of the United Nations for almost fifty years, and stopping a war before it starts is easier than ending a war already underway. History, however, has shown that military interventions and economic sanctions often do more harm than good. In Preventive Diplomacy, Nobel prize winners, top officials, and revered thinkers tackle these issues and explore the process of conflict prevention from humanitarian, economic, and political perspectives. This cross-disciplinary reader on global politics demonstrates that when new insights and methodologies on public health are applied to the handling of international disasters, the change in policy perspective is intriguing—even hopeful.

Library Journal

This collection of essays features many authors well known in the international arena, including UN officials and activists from nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). Editor Cahill (director, Ctr. for International Health and Cooperation) has compiled papers applying a public-health model to the analysis of conflict situations. The various contributors thus recommend proactive techniques to prevent conflict rather than the usual reactive models of intervention after a crisis. Early warning is the most widely recommended approach: leaders should be aware of tension areas with the potential to become violent. Another important approach is more serious postconflict analysis to ascertain when and whether a conflict could have been avoided. Roles are seen for the UN and its affiliated agencies, for regional security organizations, for humanitarian NGOs, and even for journalists, who may uncover emerging conflicts. These papers were originally presented at a symposium at the UN and published in 1996 by Basic Books; some have been revised for this edition. The collection would be useful as a reader or supplemental text in an advanced course; its appeal will be limited to specialists.--Marcia L. Sprules, Council on Foreign Relations Lib., New York Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.

Kevin M. Cahill is president and director of the Center for International Health and Cooperation in New York City. He also serves as director of the Tropical Disease Center at Lenox Hill Hospital and runs the joint degree program with CUNY for their International Diploma in Humanitarian Assistance. He is also the author of A Framework for Survival (1999) and the forthcoming Clearing the Fields.