The Rise of European Security Cooperation

A political scientist at the RAND Corporation, Jones takes issue with the widespread view (particularly prevalent in the United States) that European security cooperation has been a failure. Thoroughly examining post-Cold War European cooperation on security institutions, economic sanctions, arms production, and military forces, he argues that such skepticism is misplaced: European security cooperation is "one of the most striking developments in international politics today." The discrepancy may result from the fact that when many observers think about security cooperation, they think about high-profile issues such as the Iraq war -- on which European governments were hopelessly divided. Jones, in contrast, is looking at less spectacular but arguably still important variables. Although he overstates progress even in these areas, his basic conclusion is persuasive and documented as nowhere else. This dense work of political science -- with over 700 footnotes and repeated discursions into international relations theory -- is not a quick read, but it builds a case that skeptics of European security cooperation will have to take into account.