The Treatment of Civil Wars in a Fragmenting International Order

In 2018, the author and Stephen John Stedman posited the existence of a post-Cold War “standard treatment” for civil wars based on mediation and peacekeeping, often implemented through the United Nations. Other scholars have questioned how durable this treatment proved to be, suggesting that it lost traction as the United States and other powers opposed mediation involving jihadist groups. Growing major power tensions further undermined the use of the treatment. Nonetheless, states and international organizations still use elements of the mediation-peacekeeping package in responding to civil wars, suggesting that it is adaptable or at least “sticky” enough to outlast the circumstances in which it first emerged. This article explores the evolution and after-lives of the standard treatment for civil wars and asks what may follow it.