Beyond Preemption: Force and Legitimacy in a Changing World

America's recent wars in Kosovo, Afghanistan, and Iraq have raised profound questions about military force: When is its use justifiable? For what purpose? Who should make the decision on whether to go to war? Beyond Preemption moves this debate forward with thoughtful discussion of what these guidelines should be and how they apply in the face of today's most pressing geopolitical challenges: terrorism, WMD proliferation, and humanitarian emergencies. Ivo H. Daalder and his colleagues draw on three years of crossnational dialogue with politicians, military officials and strategists, and international lawyers in presenting specific proposals on forging a new international consensus regarding preemption and the proper use of force in today's world.

Highlights from Beyond Preemption

"When it comes to the use of force, the American and global debate often narrows the choice to doing it within the framework of the United Nations or going it alone. This is a false choice. An effective and viable alternative to multilateral paralysis and unilateral action is for the United States to work with its democratic partners around the world to meet and defeat the global challenges of our age." Ivo H. Daalder

"Even many critics of the policies pursued by the Bush administration are pushing for different rather than no U.S. leadership. But right or wrong, fair or unfair, the U.S. intervention in Iraq has generated so much distrust of the United States that it has obscured shared interests and made collective action very difficult." Bruce W. Jentleson

"The newly established norm of the responsibility to protect will likely die in its crib if the international community fails to act effectively in Darfur." Susan E. Rice and Andrew J. Loomis

Contributors: Ivo H. Daalder, Brookings; Bruce W. Jentleson, Duke University; Anne E. Kramer, Office of Congressman Stephen Lynch; Andrew J. Loomis, Georgetown University; Susan E. Rice, Brookings; James B. Steinberg, University of Texas at Austin