| ID | 153428 |
| Title Proper | Neoclassical realism in the North Atlantic |
| Other Title Information | explaining behaviors and outcomes in the cod wars |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Steinsson, Sverrir |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Three things are puzzling about the Cod Wars, three militarized interstate disputes spread over 20 years. First, they occurred between two democratic NATO allies, members of a Western security community. Second, Iceland came close to withdrawing its NATO membership and closing the US base on Icelandic soil, which would have adversely affected the balance of power in the North Atlantic and jeopardized Iceland’s core security interests. Third, Iceland, a microstate, won each of these disputes. Historians and political scientists have consequently found it problematic to account for these puzzling disputes. This study proposes a neoclassical realist account for the occurrence and outcomes of the Cod Wars. I argue that the disputes occurred due to (i) powerful domestic pressures on statesmen to escalate and (ii) elite miscalculation. As the disputes escalated and Iceland’s Western alignment was put at greater risk, statesmen in both countries, mindful of the dangers of realignment, were able to resolve the conflicts in the end. The outcomes of the disputes reflect how British statesmen were able to make greater concessions due to weaker domestic constraints than those faced by Icelandic leaders. Iceland therefore reached a highly favorable agreement in all Cod Wars. |
| `In' analytical Note | Foreign Policy Analysis Vol. 13, No.3; Jul 2017: p.599–617 |
| Journal Source | Foreign Policy Analysis 2017-09 13, 3 |
| Key Words | NATO ; Neoclassical Realism ; North Atlantic ; Cod Wars |