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The United States deemphasized governance issues during Cold War competition

• During the Cold War, the United States' primary goal was to maintain partnerships with governments in Africa and to prevent regimes from slipping into the Soviet orbit. Enhancing governance or human rights — or even maintaining peace and stability — was not the overriding goal of U.S. assistance in this period. SSA in this period went disproportionately to poorly governed states.

Security sector assistance in the Cold War appears to have increased the incidence of civil wars

• U.S. assistance appears likely to have increased the incidence of civil wars in this period, likely by either exacerbating domestic instabilities or provoking proxy conflicts.

Most security sector assistance in most countries in the post–Cold War era appears to have had little net impact

• Whatever "success stories" might exist are relatively modest in their impact on political violence, obscured by much larger amounts of inefficient spending or offset by counterproductive outcomes in other cases.

Security sector assistance has had significant, positive impact in peacekeeping contexts

• Even when they controlled for the direct effects of "blue helmets," the authors found that SSA executed in the presence of UN peacekeepers has statistically significant, favorable effects on a range of outcomes. It decreases the likelihood of renewed conflict, terrorist attacks, and government repression.