International diplomacy and military force: How to find the lost politics of conflict management.

The revolution in military affairs (RMA) has at some levels made it easier and more attractive to deploy armed forces to change the course of internat ional conflicts. RMA has also facilitated a concealment of the role and mea ning of politics when using force. The article departs from this observatio n through an analysis of interaction between politics and military force du ring military operations, with two main perspectives: 'all or nothing' and 'limited war'. Building on this foundation, the author then proceeds to an analysis of various military strategies in conflicts, and the form of inter action between political and military considerations they underscore. Contr asting these theoretical orientations with how political actors debated the use of armed forces an Bosnia and Kosovo, he draws two conclusions: a lack of understanding of how important a policy is when using force, and, secon dly, the mere presence of political goals is not enough to increase operati onal efficiency. It is also important that stated goals are achievable thro ugh the military strategies, and that the conclusions eventually unfolding from the chosen military strategy, are politically acceptable.