Deterrence Now

Patrick Morgan’s authoritative study revisits the place of deterrence after the Cold War. By assessing and questioning the state of modern deterrence theory, particularly under conditions of nuclear proliferation, Morgan argues that there are basic flaws in the design of the theory that ultimately limits its utility. Given the probable patterns of future international politics, he suggests that greater attention be paid to ‘general’ deterrence as opposed to ‘immediate’ deterrence and to examining the deterrent capabilities of collective actors such as NATO and the UN Security Council. Finally he contends that the revolution in military affairs can promote less reliance on deterrence by retaliatory threats, support better collective management of peace and security and permit us to outgrow nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. This new major work builds upon Patrick Morgan’s landmark book, Deterrence (1983).

• Authoritative study of deterrence after the Cold War • Author is a leading name. Previous book Deterrence: A Conceptual Analysis (Sage 1983), was extremely influential • Some appeal to military studies market

1. History: deterrence in the Cold War; 2. Deterrence and rationality; 3. General deterrence; 4. Testing, testing, one … two … three; 5. Collective actor deterrence; 6. The revolution in military affairs and deterrence; 7. Deterrence in the post-Cold War world; 8. Some conclusions.

‘By helping us to think about deterrence in new ways, Morgan guides us to a better understanding of this crucial part of international relations.’ The Journal of European Affairs