United Nations Peace Operations and International Relations Theory

This excellent book successfully engages the literature on UN peacekeeping with scholarship on international relations (IR) theory. Oksamytna (King's College, London) and Karlsrud (Norwegian Institute of International Affairs) have arranged the contributions of nine scholars into a superb one-stop shop for readers who want an overview of how different theoretical perspectives address the issue of post-Cold War UN peacekeeping operations. Contributors examine the capabilities and limits of individual IR theories for explaining peacekeeping missions and their effectiveness. All seek to answer the same question: Why does UN peacekeeping take the shape that it does, applying a particular theory of IR to a case study from their own research. Together they highlight the shortcomings of the dominant realist theory and the important contribution of alternative theories (from constructivism and liberal institutionalism to practice theories, including critical security studies, feminist institutionalism, and complexity theory) to the understanding of phenomena (such as peacekeeping) that do not neatly fit the realist model. CHOICE 'This is a long overdue contribution that sits at the intersection of critical reflection and good old-fashioned scholarship. Composed of nine chapters that succinctly weave the evolution of UN peacekeeping missions together with major theories in International Relations (IR), this volume will serve as an important learning resource for young academics. Readers who remain uninspired after finishing this volume are likely to be few and far between.' International Affairs -- .