This paper presents a rationalist approach to treaty formation and adherence, where nations are motivated by their self-interest in a strate-gic framework that accounts for other nations’ responses. Key consid-erations include coordination games, dynamic cooperation, institutional design, and the aggregation technology of public supply. Dynamic as-pects involve multilateral cooperation under a variety of game forms. Treaty design is essential in motivating nations to fulfill obligations with-out the need for enforcement. Some properties of public goods, such as the manner in which individual contributions determine the available consumption level, have a crucial influence over nations’ incentives to adhere to treaties once ratified. The role of morality and conformity are captured in the strategic framework presented.
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