In this exercise, we provide a couple examples of the successful use of brinkmanship, where “success” is indicative of the two sides’ reaching a mutually acceptable deal. For each example,

(i) identify the interests of the parties;

(ii) describe the nature of the uncertainty inherent in the situation;

(iii) give the strategies the parties used to escalate the risk of disaster;

(iv) discuss whether the strategies were good ones; and

(v) (Optional) if you can, set up a small mathematical model of the kind presented in this chapter. In each case, we provide a few readings to get you started; you should locate more by using the resources of your library and resources on the World Wide Web such as Lexis-Nexis.

(a) The Uruguay Round of international trade negotiations that started in 1986 and led to the formation of the World Trade Organization in 1994. Reading: John H. Jackson, The World Trading System, 2nd ed. (Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press, 1997), pp. 44–49 and ch. 12 and 13.

(b) The Camp David Accords between Israel and Egypt in 1978. Reading: William B. Quandt, Camp David: Peacemaking and Politics (Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution, 1986).