The Employment of the Armed Forces in Cases of Political or Social Violence: A Comparison Between the United States and Romania

The thesis argument is that in a democracy, the military is a valuable instrument in quelling domestic violence. The author attempts to prove that the military response is critical in dealing with civilian violence and approaches the issue of the legitimacy of this response. The author analyses the current status of civil-military relations, the record of the military's employment in cases of civilian disturbances, as well as the legal framework governing this employment in both countries. The thesis uses the 1992 Los Angeles riots as a case study for the United States. For Romania, the 1989 Revolution and the 1991 incidents are investigated with a view to determining Romanian particulars. In conclusion, the thesis compares the two cases to draw conclusions from the U.S. case appropriate to the Romanian one, and thus to improve the Romanian military response to civil violence.