Research at the Leonard Davis Institute for International Relations is addressing the phenomenon of long periods of peace in South America since the 1890s and among the West African countries since their independence in the early 1960s. These two different regions of the third world are being compared in order to assess the possibility and quality of peace and explain the dynamics of internation relations among the states in the two regions. The research questions are: (a) how can we explain the maintenance of international peace in South America and in West Africa ? and (b) can peace be maintained among states that do not sustain Western democratic regimes ?