Cosmopolitan theory, militaries and the deployment of force

Abstract

Scholars working within a broadly cosmopolitan tradition in international relations argue that militaries have a new role in what has been variously described as 'cosmopolitan law enforcement' or the 'new military humanism'. This paper considers these cosmopolitan propositions about the legitimate deployment of force and the role of military institutions in the context of cosmopolitanism as both an ethical and political project. It explores the basis within cosmopolitan theory for the use of coercive force in support of cosmopolitan purposes and considers what constitutes a cosmopolitan (or cosmopolitan-minded) military and how such a military might function.