| ID | 080316 |
| Title Proper | Purpose of regime intervention, 1815-2001 |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Nelson, Travis |
| Publication | 2007. |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | This article is an examination of an understudied yet clearly significant international
phenomenon: military intervention explicitly directed at regime change in a target
state. The article argues that regime interventions are best understood not dyadically,
but regionally. They are primarily attempts to stabilize regional interests of
the intervening state. This hypothesis is tested through statistical analysis of
intervention between 1815 and 2001. The statistical results indicate that regime
interventions are marked by a strong connection between the intervening state
and the target region and by direct instability within that region prior to the
intervention.
This finding calls into question the dyadic assumptions of much empirical work
on international conflict; regional perspectives need to figure more prominently.
This suggests, for example, that the 2003 invasion of Iraq is less about Saddam
Hussein or direct access to Iraqi oil, but a signal of American commitment to
the broader Middle East. This intervention, like most other regime interventions,
is regionally motivated, not dyadic. Regime interventions occur when a region is
undergoing instability and an intervening state believes it must signal commitment
to regional stability. While interventions in Iraq and Afghanistan make
sense within this context, similar actions in North Korea and Iran seem much
less likely. |
| `In' analytical Note | Contemporary Security Policy Vol. 28, No.3; Dec 2007: p444-463 |
| Journal Source | Contemporary Security Policy Vol. 28, No.3; Dec 2007: p444-463 |
| Key Words | Military Intervention ; North Korea ; Iran ; Iraq |