With the collapse of political order around the world, a new international order is emerging, one that is crafted to suit American imperial objectives.

In Empire Lite, Michael Ignatieff explores both sides of what he sees as a new global empire—the imperial and the humanitarian. Humanitarian agencies face the dilemma of how to keep their programs from being suborned to imperial interests. Yet they realize it was American air power that made an uneasy peace and humanitarian reconstruction possible, first in Bosnia, then in Kosovo and finally in Afghanistan.

Drawing on his own experiences of war zones, and with an extraordinary account of life in Afghanistan, Ignatieff identifies the illusions that make a genuine act of solidarity so difficult and asks what can be done to help people in war-torn societies enjoy the essential right to rule themselves.

Michael Ignatieff is a Canadian writer and historian. His books include Scar Tissue (which was shortlisted for the Booker Prize), The Russian Album, Blood And Belonging, The Warrior's Honour, The Lesser Evil: Political Ethics in an Age of Terror, and The Rights Revolution. His work has been translated into many languages and awarded numerous prizes and awards. Before being elected as a Liberal Member of Parliament in 2006, he was Professor of Human Rights and Director of the Carr Center for Human Rights Policy at Harvard University. Until May 2011 Ignatieff was leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. He lives in Toronto, where he teaches at the University of Toronto.

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