Ending Civil War: Rhodesia and Lebanon in Perspective

by Matthew Preston

Overview

Matthew Preston returbans politics to its rightful place at the heart of the study of internal conflict. Rejecting approaches that emphasise economics or ethnicity, this investigation of the wars in Rhodesia and Lebanon sets out the complex political dynamic that eventually brought each to an end. Above all, it demonstrates the robustness of local agendas in civil wars and the difficulties outsiders face in brokering settlements. With intervention in 'failed states' so high up the international agenda, the message is one that scholars and policy-makers can ill afford to ignore.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781850435792
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	09/30/2004
Series:	International Library of War Studies , #2
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.12(w) x 9.20(h) x 1.24(d)

About the Author

Matthew Preston is a Senior Research Officer in the Global Issues Research Group of the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. Prior to that he taught International Relations at Exeter and St Catherine's Colleges, Oxford.

Editorial Reviews

"A cogent, precise and well-argued analysis of war terminations in Rhodesia and Lebanon—a very impressive piece of work. The use of evidence is very careful and the argument very clear."—David Keen, London School of Economics

"An excellent piece of work, which should find a wide readership not only in the disciplines of international relations and contemporary history, but also African and Middle Eastern area studies"—Philip Robins, St. Antony's College, Oxford

"...deftly constructs layered narratives that capture the complexity of civil wars without losing analytical focus." —African History

From the Publisher