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Sweden, Finland, and the Meaning of Alliance Membership

Sweden, Finland, and the Meaning of Alliance Membership

Rationalist understandings of military alliances argue that a formal treaty underpinning the security relationship is crucial for deepening and rendering more efficient defense cooperation between countries. However, Sweden’s and Finland’s cooperation with…

Not at Any Price: LBJ, Pakistan, and Bargaining in an Asymmetric Intelligence Relationship

Not at Any Price: LBJ, Pakistan, and Bargaining in an Asymmetric Intelligence Relationship

International relations theory focuses largely on acknowledged alliances, and yet secret ties also shape relations among states. U.S.-Pakistani intelligence collaboration in the early Cold War highlights the gaps in our understanding of informal and secret…

America’s Alliances After Trump: Lessons from the Summer of ’69

America’s Alliances After Trump: Lessons from the Summer of ’69

Richard Nixon's 1969 Guam doctrine led America's allies in Asia to pursue a variety of strategies based on perceptions of America's reliability. If the Biden administration wants to strengthen the country's alliances moving forward, and avoid repeating Nixon's…

Restraining an Ally: Israel, the United States, and Iran’s Nuclear Program, 2011–2012

Restraining an Ally: Israel, the United States, and Iran’s Nuclear Program, 2011–2012

In asymmetric alliances, a superior state provides security to a weaker ally, who in exchange surrenders its autonomy to its stronger protector. But what happens when the weaker state’s vital interests clash with its stronger ally’s preferences? In 2011…