Intervention and Governance: Defining Sovereignty in Post-Conflict Power Agreements. The Case of Bosnia

The idea of military intervention entails a breach of sovereignty, as it is located on the continuum between peace and war. One of the problems that arise in post-conflict situations and stabilization efforts is that of restoring ` the political` back to the state. In this regard, the transfer of power implies a period of transition in which the holder of power is not clearly defined and thus international institutions, foreign states and local power-holders may overlap certain functions in the process of governance - which can lead to the institutionalization of diffuse practices and altered meanings of internal security. By discussing the concept of sovereignty as put forward by Cynthia Weber and Carl Schmitt, and bridging the theories of intervention and state formation, this article will attempt to build a new understanding on the idea of sovereignty as part of post-conflict governance. The case of Bosnia will be analysed in this regard, with a focus on the power-sharing agreements that characterize post-conflict situations following an international intervention.