Indirect Rule: The Making of U.S. International Hierarchy

Lake builds on his groundbreaking work on hierarchy in international relations to explore the historical foundations of the U.S.-led world order. For Lake, American power is best seen as a form of indirect rule: bargains struck between a dominant state and elites in subordinate countries. The book traces this dynamic in U.S. relations through a wide array of countries and regions, including the Caribbean and Central America in the early twentieth century, western Europe in the middle of the twentieth century, and Middle Eastern autocracies today. For all their differences, Lake sees the same essential bargain at the heart of each instance of indirect rule. The United States forms an alliance with local elites most closely aligned with its interests, such as landed elites in the Caribbean and monarchies and military regimes in the Middle East, who then lend their support to U.S. foreign policy objectives in exchange for military guarantees or concessions that help cement their domination of their own countries. Through careful historical analysis, Lake is able to show why this form of hierarchical order is so durable but also why it can fuel illiberalism, corruption, free-riding, and dangerous risk-taking by the United States and its partners.