Quality Peace Peacebuilding, Victory, and World Order Studies in Strategic Peacebuilding Series

In Quality Peace, leading peace researcher Peter Wallensteen offers a broad analysis of peacebuilding, isolating what does and not work when settling conflicts. The book uses statistical analysis to compare two war outcomes-negotiated settlement and victory- in the post-Cold War era. Wallensteen finds that if peace is to last, three conditions must be met: a losing party must retain its dignity; security and the rule of law must be ensured for all; and the time horizon for the settlement must be long enough to ensure a sense of normalcy. Wallensteen breaks down the components of all of these conditions and applies them to interstate conflicts, civil wars in which rebels are aiming to take over the entire state, and separatist rebellions. He also delves into the issue of world order and the significance of major power relations for local peace efforts. Thus, the work provides a remarkable understanding of how different types of war outcomes deal with post-war conditions. Sharply argued and comprehensive, Quality Peace will invigorate peace research and stimulate peace practice, becoming an authoritative work in the field.

Peter Wallensteen is a pioneer in peace research, having worked in the field since the 1960s. He was a founder of the Department of Peace and Conflict Research at Uppsala University and the first holder of the Dag Hammarskjöld chair in peace research in Sweden in 1985. He directed the Uppsala Conflict Data Program, which has become a leading provider of data on armed conflict and other forms of organized violence around the world. Since 2006, Wallensteen has served as the Richard G. Starmann Sr. Research Professor of Peace Studies at the Kroc Institute, University of Notre Dame.