When should the international community intervene to prevent suffering within sovereign states? This question has come to dominate international relations in the post Cold War era and remains a source of heated debate. This book advances a fresh analysis which transcends the existing circular debate and offers a new perspective on this seminal issue. Since the end of the Cold War the "human security" agenda has increasingly challenged the traditional notion of sovereignty and advocated robust Western military intervention through the mobilization of global civil society. This book critically analyses the record of the normative thesis since NATO widely hailed intervention in Kosovo and argues that it has failed to substantially influence international politics, as particularly evidenced by the invasion of Iraq and non-intervention in Darfur. In identifying the flaws inherent in the normative position, this study rejects the traditional realist framework and articulates an alternative analysis that charts a new direction for viable, progressive change.