Politics in a Religious World

Politics in a Religious World examines why US diplomacy often misunderstands if not ignores the role of religion in international conflicts.<br /><br />After the Cold War it became evident that religion was a key factor in many conflicts including Bosnia Rwanda and Afghanistan. However the US failed to correctly appreciate this role for example predicting the failure of the Iranian theocrats in 1979. Today most of the security and foreign relations challenges faced by the US are infused with religious factors from its relations with Iran to the Iraq war and jihadist terrorists. Religion however can also play a transnational role when it comes to human rights conflict resolution and political mobilization. <br /><br />Written by an expert in the field the book analyzes why the US deliberately avoids the religious dimension of international affairs and proposes a comprehensive approach to a religiously literate US foreign policy. Politics in a Religious World addresses a needed area and will appeal to anyone studying US foreign policy as well as the interaction of religion and international affairs.