This book addresses one of the most important issues in international relations – how wars are ended.
The volume draws on the direct experience of both soldiers and academics, who in each case have also been advisers on fighting and ending wars.
Unlike more theoretical works, the book draws on first-hand experiences in the case studies, which include the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, Sierra Leone and Indonesia, among others.
The volume is constructed around a series of themes. The first theme is why wars start and how they can be understood, based on the assumption that knowing how, and why, wars start is fundamental to understanding how they might end. The second is what sustains wars and what makes them difficult to end. Again, once wars start, understanding what keeps them going is critical to how to end them.