1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910164869403321

Autore

Strong James R.

Titolo

Public opinion, legitimacy and Tony Blair's War in Iraq / / James Strong

Pubbl/distr/stampa

London ; ; New York : , : Routledge, , 2017

ISBN

1-315-51401-X

1-315-51399-4

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (229 pages) : illustrations, tables

Collana

Routledge Studies in Foreign Policy Analysis

Disciplina

941.0859

Soggetti

Iraq War, 2003-2011 - Participation, British

Iraq War, 2003-2011 - Public opinion

Public opinion - Great Britain - History - 21st century

Iraq War, 2003-2011 - Diplomatic history

Iraq War, 2003-2011 - Moral and ethical aspects

War (International law)

Electronic books.

Great Britain Foreign relations 1997- Decision making

Great Britain Military policy Decision making

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Nota di contenuto

pt. I. Public opinion -- pt. II. Legitimacy -- pt. III. Tony Blair's war in Iraq.

Sommario/riassunto

"In the wake of the publication of the Chilcot report, this book reinterprets the relationship between British public opinion and the Blair government's decision-making in the run-up to the 2003 invasion of Iraq. It highlights how the government won the parliamentary vote and got its war, but never won the argument that it was the right thing to do. Understanding how, why and with what consequences Britain wound up in this position means understanding better both this specific case and the wider issue of how democratic publics influence foreign policy processes. Taking an innovative constructivist approach to understanding how public actors potentially influence foreign policy, Strong frames the debate about Iraq as a contest over legitimacy among active public actors, breaking it down into four constituent



elements covering the necessity, legality and morality of war, and the government's authority. The book presents a detailed empirical account of the British public debate before the invasion of Iraq based on the rigorous interrogation of thousands of primary sources, employing both quantitative and qualitative content analysis methods to interpret the shape of debate between January 2002 and March 2003. Also contributing to the wider foreign policy analysis literature, the book investigates the domestic politics of foreign policy decision-making, and particularly the influence public opinion exerts; considers the domestic structural determinants of foreign policy decision-making; and studies the ethics of foreign policy decision-making, and the legitimate use of force. It will be of great use to students and scholars of foreign policy analysis, as well as those interested in legitimacy in international conflict, British foreign policy, the Iraq War and the role of public opinion in conflict situations"--Provided by publisher.