05 July 2013
WP260 | The Strategy of Coercive Isolation in U.S. Security Policy
Abstract
The isolation of adversaries is an important form of coercive diplomacy. Because countries that are isolated are more vulnerable to military force and more exposed to the costs of fighting, the diplomatic process of being isolated puts coercive pressure on them. This paper focuses on the theory and practice of such diplomacy—what I call “coercive isolation.” We first present conceptual model of the strategy, which highlights the logic of how it works. Then we examine three different ways in which it can be used—immediate deterrence, blackmail, and compellence—and discuss the costs and difficulty of succeeding in these contexts. Historical examples of each of the three scenarios are examined to illuminate important dimensions of the model. From this discussion we also draw several conclusions about the conditions that favour the success of coercive isolation strategies. Finally, we examine the role and utility of coercive isolation in three problem areas of U.S. security policy—humanitarian intervention, counter-proliferation, and regime change.
About the Author
Timothy W. Crawford (PhD, Columbia University) is an Associate Professor in the Political Science Department at Boston College, where he currently serves as Director of the undergraduate programme. His current research focuses on the role of wedge strategies in coercive diplomacy and alliance politics. He is author of Pivotal Deterrence: Third Party Statecraft and the Pursuit of Peace (Cornell University Press, 2003), which received the Edgar S. Furniss Award; and editor (with Alan J. Kuperman) of Gambling on Humanitarian Intervention: Moral Hazard, Rebellion, and Civil War (Routledge, 2006). His articles have appeared in International Security, Security Studies, Political Science Quarterly, Journal of Strategic Studies, Global Governance, and other academic journals. Dr Crawford was a national security fellow at the Olin Institute of Strategic Studies and a postdoctoral fellow at the Brookings Institution, and the Center for International Studies, Princeton University; and a term-member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He has served (2009-2012) on the Governing Board of the International Security and Arms Control Section of the American Political Science Association.
Abstract
The isolation of adversaries is an important form of coercive diplomacy. Because countries that are isolated are more vulnerable to military force and more exposed to the costs of fighting, the diplomatic process of being isolated puts coercive pressure on them. This paper focuses on the theory and practice of such diplomacy—what I call “coercive isolation.” We first present conceptual model of the strategy, which highlights the logic of how it works. Then we examine three different ways in which it can be used—immediate deterrence, blackmail, and compellence—and discuss the costs and difficulty of succeeding in these contexts. Historical examples of each of the three scenarios are examined to illuminate important dimensions of the model. From this discussion we also draw several conclusions about the conditions that favour the success of coercive isolation strategies. Finally, we examine the role and utility of coercive isolation in three problem areas of U.S. security policy—humanitarian intervention, counter-proliferation, and regime change.
About the Author
Timothy W. Crawford (PhD, Columbia University) is an Associate Professor in the Political Science Department at Boston College, where he currently serves as Director of the undergraduate programme. His current research focuses on the role of wedge strategies in coercive diplomacy and alliance politics. He is author of Pivotal Deterrence: Third Party Statecraft and the Pursuit of Peace (Cornell University Press, 2003), which received the Edgar S. Furniss Award; and editor (with Alan J. Kuperman) of Gambling on Humanitarian Intervention: Moral Hazard, Rebellion, and Civil War (Routledge, 2006). His articles have appeared in International Security, Security Studies, Political Science Quarterly, Journal of Strategic Studies, Global Governance, and other academic journals. Dr Crawford was a national security fellow at the Olin Institute of Strategic Studies and a postdoctoral fellow at the Brookings Institution, and the Center for International Studies, Princeton University; and a term-member of the Council on Foreign Relations. He has served (2009-2012) on the Governing Board of the International Security and Arms Control Section of the American Political Science Association.
