Given the fact that two-thirds of all intrastate wars since 1945 have included foreign
interventions what drives sovereign states to support non-state conflict parties? In order to
understand causes and calculations of this particular type of third party intervention this
book connects some of the most important contemporary debates in international relations
ranging from security cooperation between states and non-state actors to the effects of
intervention on both local conflict dynamics and interstate relations. Presenting a new
theoretical framework and a multidimensional concept of support (endorsement hosting as well
as financial and military assistance) this book establishes a systematic path between
international as well as domestic incentives and specific types of sponsorship policies. In a
subsequent comparative analysis the author examines conditions and dynamics of Syria's
cooperation with Fatah the Kurdistan Workers' Party and Hizballah from 1964 to 2006.
