Description
Many non-state armed groups engage in sophisticated international affairs, such as maintaining bilateral relations with foreign states, engaging in multistakeholder diplomacy, cooperating with international organisations and humanitarian agencies, mobilising transnationally, and liaising with other armed groups around the world. International Relations as a discipline has, however, shown limited interest in the study of the foreign policy of non-state armed groups. The paper argues that rebels have a foreign policy which plays a fundamental role in their transition from war to peace. Taking the case of ETA (Euskadi Ta Askatasuna or "Basque Homeland and Liberty") in the Basque country, based on personal interviews and discourse analysis, the paper generates theoretical lessons on the international relations of non-state armed groups. Moving away from the idea that non-state actors merely mimic the state, the paper also homes in on the important role played by emotions in understanding their foreign policy.
