TY - JOUR
T1 - Preventive force in US National Security Strategy
AU - Steinberg, James
N1 - Funding Information:
According to the president and his national security team, there are three reasons for a more expansive use of preventive force – the changing nature of the actors who threaten the United States (rogue states and terrorists vs traditional state adversaries); the characteristic of the threat (clandestine weapons programmes) and the inadequacy of relying on collective action through the Security Council (‘While the United States will constantly strive to enlist the support of the international community, we will not hesitate to act alone, if necessary, to exercise our right of self-defense by acting preemptively’).10
PY - 2005/12/1
Y1 - 2005/12/1
N2 - The Bush administration's 2002 National Security Strategy touched off a vigorous debate in the United States and abroad, which intensified with the war in Iraq, over what appeared to be a novel, broad assertion of the right to use force to prevent latent threats from emerging, particularly threats associated with terrorism and nuclear, biological or chemical weapons. But the use of preventive force - and the debate over its legality and wisdom - predate the Bush administration's post-11 September 2001 strategy. A careful examination of the history, rationale, costs and benefits of using preventive force suggests that, while rare, preventive force has a legitimate role to play in tackling some of the most dangerous security problems facing the United States and the wider international community.
AB - The Bush administration's 2002 National Security Strategy touched off a vigorous debate in the United States and abroad, which intensified with the war in Iraq, over what appeared to be a novel, broad assertion of the right to use force to prevent latent threats from emerging, particularly threats associated with terrorism and nuclear, biological or chemical weapons. But the use of preventive force - and the debate over its legality and wisdom - predate the Bush administration's post-11 September 2001 strategy. A careful examination of the history, rationale, costs and benefits of using preventive force suggests that, while rare, preventive force has a legitimate role to play in tackling some of the most dangerous security problems facing the United States and the wider international community.
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U2 - 10.1080/00396330500433290
DO - 10.1080/00396330500433290
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:31144435700
SN - 0039-6338
VL - 47
SP - 55
EP - 72
JO - Survival
JF - Survival
IS - 4
ER -