The purpose of this thesis is to understand the circumstances that result in the inability of third-party interventions to solve civil wars. Previous research has examined the impact of third-party interventions on the outcomes of civil wars, the interests of third-party actors in civil wars, as well as the perceptions of civil war participants on third-party actors. The theory in this paper asserts that third-party interventions are unsuccessful when the government and leader of at least one country place the interest of special interest groups ahead of the national interest of their country. This research uses the war in eastern Ukraine as a case study. This thesis uses nationalist and veteran groups as the special interest group, and high officials in the presidential administration of Volodymyr Zelenskiy as the government leaders. The rhetoric of the Zelenskiy administration in regards to the prospects of instituting peace in eastern Ukraine is examined from the time span of May 2019 to March 2021. The evidence of this research demonstrates that the rhetoric administration of Zelenskiy changed from conciliatory and positive, to that of a combination of positive and negative rhetoric towards peace. These government officials attempted to appeal to their voting base, as well as the special interest groups studied. This contradicting rhetoric creates an environment of confusion in regards to ending wars and conflicts.

Approved for public release, distribution is unlimited / This thesis explores the ongoing Malay-Muslim separatist insurgency in southern Thailand. In particular, it argues that historically-rooted structural factors, to include relative economic deprivation, limited political integration, and struggle for the maintenance of ethnic-religious identity, are at the root of this insurgency. The year 2001 produced two catalysts for the renewal of this insurgency, one internal and one external. The internal catalyst was a newly elected suppressive government regime under the leadership of Prime Minister Thaksin and the Thai Rak Thai Party. The external catalyst was the growing, increasingly radicalized Islamist movement, largely defined through terrorist violence, that expressed itself in the 9/11 attacks. The combination of these has produced rekindled secessionist violence of a previously unknown level in the Thai provinces of Pattani, Narathiwat, and Yala. Given the deeply ingrained structural cause of this insurgency, as well as a government administration whose policies and conflict mismanagement continually fuels the violence, the prospect for conflict resolution is not promising. Nonetheless, it remains in the best interests of the United States that this conflict is soon resolved. Should the insurgency continue growing, the situation may reach a point of drastic consequences for Thailand as well as the United States. / Captain, United States Air Force

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The focus in this dissertation is on the rise of secessionism and its curtailment in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Theories pertaining to centre-periphery relations, as well as right-sizing the state, are used for this purpose. Factors such as the DRC’s vast territory and colonial policies affected the centre-periphery relations after independence. The weak ties between the centre and the peripheries were important factors in the attempts at secession that followed independence. In addition, the political and administrative centre (Kinshasa) was too weak to keep the restive peripheries in check. International military intervention, thus, played an important role in defeating attempts at secession. The strategies of President Mobutu in strengthening the centre, as well as the lack of secessionism in the DRC after the collapse of the centre towards the end of Mobutu’s presidency, receive attention. / Political Sciences / M.A. (Politics)