Emerging Security Community in the Americas.: A Theoretical Analysis of the Consequences of the Post-Cold War Inter-American Democracy Regime

摘要

The purpose of this thesis is to assess the actual and potential consequences of the inter-American democracy regime in the post-Cold War world. The thesis has three major arguments. First, the inter-American democracy regime 'matters' because it can positively impact state and individual behavior in the post-Cold War inter-American system. Second, the three principles that constitute this regime (democracy, interdependence, and international organizations) are mutually reinforcing in perpetuating the 'community of democracies' in the Western Hemisphere. Finally, this inter-American 'community of democracies' is plausibly on a path to a pluralistic security community based on the logic of the post-Cold War inter-American democracy regime. This thesis places the actual and potential consequences of this regime into a broader, systemic context. A critical examination is provided of two high-profile cases of democratic crisis to assess the impact of the post-Cold War inter-American democracy regime: Paraguay (1996) and Peru (2000). The author concludes that, in the post-Cold War world, the Western Hemisphere is evidence of a liberal, qualitative peace. (76 refs.).