Preventive Diplomacy at the UN

The concept of preventive diplomacy has captivated the United Nations
since it was first articulated by Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjöld a half-century
ago. Successive generations of diplomats and statesmen have invested in the idea
that diplomatic efforts might be able to head off international conflicts and
disasters. Dramatic successes, such as the Cuban Missile Crisis of 1962, contrast
with dramatic failures, such as the inability of UN efforts to halt the invasion of
Iraq in 2003. In this careful study, distinguished former UN civil servant Bertrand
G. Ramcharan traces the history of the practice of preventive diplomacy by UN
Secretaries-General, the Security Council, and other UN organizations, and assesses
the record of preventive diplomacy and examines its prospects in an age of genocide
and terrorism.