U.S. Peacefare: Organizing American Peace-Building Operations

This book provides a survey of the U.S. civilian and military agencies responsible for postconflict reconstruction and peace-building around the world and how these agencies function in the interagency process.

U.S. Peacefare: Organizing American Peace-Building Operations surveys the evolution of the American peace-building apparatus during the presidencies of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, with an emphasis on changes since 2003, when the invasion of Iraq led the Bush Administration to adopt a Clinton-style nation-building approach they had previously vigorously opposed.

U.S. Peacefare begins with a historical overview of official U.S. peace-building, then looks at the organization and interaction of the major federal agencies in the National Security Council, the State Department, and the Defense Department, as well the U.S. Institute for Peace, and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Throughout, author and former Ambassador Dane Smith emphasizes how a deeper understanding of peace-building organizations and their interactions in particular cases is essential to strengthening future U.S. conflict management. The book addresses the critical overall issue of how peace-building is funded, but within the federal budget and internationally, and concludes with Smith's recommendations for reforming those organizations.