This book is a much-needed exploration of the multifaceted security problems facing the Third World in the aftermath of the Cold War.

Ayoob addresses what he perceives to be the major underlying cause of conflict and insecurity in the Third World - i.e., the early stage of state making at which postcolonial states find themselves - drawing comparisons with the West European experience. He argues that this approach provides richer comparative data and less ephemeral conclusions than approaches that adopt development or dependency as their basic organizing concepts.

Subsequent chapters analyze the dynamics of interstate conflict in the Third World, the role of Third World countries in the international system, and, especially, the critical impact of the end of the Cold War on the Third World security problematic. Ayoob concludes with a set of explanations intended to help students, scholars, and policymakers decipher the continuing profusion of conflicts in the Third World and the trends and problems that will likely dominate well into the twenty-first century.