ABSTRACT
This conclusion presents some closing thoughts on concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book suggests that knowledge of the geographic context of an episode of conflict affords us a valuable advantage over previous scholarship assessing conflict processes. Specifically, an appreciation of this geographic context enables us to better specify the processes and causal mechanisms that cause conflicts to occur more frequently in some regions than others. Moreover, sensitivity to the geographic neighborhoods within which states are located improves our understanding and appreciation of the factors that cause pairs of states to fail to overcome their differences of opinion and, instead, resort to the employment of military force to resolve their disagreements. Furthermore, consideration of the geographic makeup of specific locations moves us closer to theoretical and statistical models than could help us to predict the specific territories, and not only the states, that are most likely to be targeted by future uses of military force.
