Deterring International Terrorism and Rogue States: U.S. National Security Policy after 9/11

Extract

Deterring International Terrorism and Rogue States: U.S. National Security Policy after 9/11. By James H. Lebovic. New York: Routledge, 2007. 240p. $135.00 cloth, $37.95 paper.

Recent literature on terrorism and so-called “rogue” proliferation states is vast, and James Lebovic's book stands out among the very finest for its original arguments, richly documented presentation, and engaging and thought-provoking discussion. Overall, it is critical of the post-9/11 view dominant in U.S. strategic thinking that the main adversaries are undeterrable. It shows that terrorists and leaders of renegade regimes are neither mindless nor irrational, but rather are often sensitive to the costs of punishment and thus susceptible to the logic of deterrence. Deterrence doctrines should therefore not be abandoned as Cold War relics, and the book makes a remarkable contribution toward bridging the doctrinal issues and debates from the Cold War (nuclear deterrence) past to the current problems of antiproliferation and counterterrorism.