Resources & Tools
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Over the past decade, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) has trained members of police and military forces around the world to prepare them to participate in international peacekeeping operations or to contribute to post-conflict stabilization and rule of law interventions in their own or in other war-torn countries. Most of the training takes place outside the United States, from remote, rugged bases to centrally located schools and academies, from Senegal to Nepal, from Italy to the Philippines. Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Training
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This report examines the complexities of Chinese-Norht Korean relations, taking into account the perspective of China's border areas, a vital aspect of China's relationship with the Korean peninsula that is often overlooked. Countries: China, North Korea
| Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Conflict Analysis, Demographics, Economics and Development, Political Systems and International Relations
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Overall, Syria has marginally benefited from the war in Iraq at both the regional and international levels. After watching the U.S. military unseat the Baathist regime next door in 2003 with unprecedented speed, it looked to many observers—including some in Damascus—as if Syria would be next in line. Countries: Iraq, Syria
| Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Conflict Management and Resolution, Economics and Development, Governance, Human Rights, International and Regional Organizations, Mediation and Facilitation, Negotiation and Diplomacy, Nongovernmental Organizations, Political Systems and International Relations, Terrorism and Political Extremism
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International actors in Security Sector Reform (SSR) are increasingly taking on roles as “advisors” to Ministries of Interior, Defense, and Justice. Rather than directly implement changes necessary for SSR, these advisors must persuasively articulate suggestions to their local counterparts. Advisors’ success depends on their ability to convey recommendations in a manner that makes change acceptable to their advisees. Countries: Afghanistan, Iraq
| Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Governance, Peacekeeping, Post-Conflict Activities, Rule of Law, Security and Strategy, Training, Use of Force
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George Moose, vice chair of USIP's board of directors, testified on March 5, 2009 before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State and Foreign Operations on "The Role of Civilian and Military Agencies in the Advancement of America's Diplomatic and Development Objectives." The hearing focused on the role of the military and civilian agencies in U.S. foreign policy, in permissive and nonpermissive environments. Like Moose, the Subcommittee's Chairwoman Nita Lowey (D-NY) and Ranking Member Kay Granger (R-TX) agreed that now is the time to strengthen civilian agencies and redress the imbalance that exists among diplomacy, development and defense. Countries: United States
| Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Negotiation and Diplomacy, Security and Strategy
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Law of War Training is a resource for military and civilian leaders to find information and assistance in providing law of war training for their military personnel. The manual analyzes different options for law of war training and helps leaders assess how to implement training within specific financial and operational constraints. Issue Areas: Civil-Military Relations, Rule of Law
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Since 2004, USIP's "Iraq and its Neighbors" initiative has sponsored track II dialogues and ongoing research on relations between Iraq and its six immediate neighbors. As part of this work, the Institute—in partnership with the Stimson Center—sponsored a bipartisan, independent, and unofficial Study Mission to Syria and Saudi Arabia in mid-January 2009. The delegation met with a wide variety of leading political figures, businesspeople, NGOs and foreign policy experts in both countries, including President Bashar Assad of Syria and Prince Turki al-Faysal of Saudi Arabia. The top concern for both Riyadh and Damascus remains blowback from Iraq: the ascendance of ethnic and sectarian identity and the spread of Islamic militancy. The need to contain this threat is the dominant force that shapes their relations with Iraq. Both Syria and Saudi Arabia have a vital interest in ensuring that Iraq's emerging political order is inclusive of Sunni Arab Iraqis, who have not yet been fully incorporated into Iraqi institutions. This working paper represents the initial findings of the Study Mission. |
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The Iraq PRT program has highlighted the challenges that the U.S. government faces in conducting operations in conflicted environments. The Iraq PRT Project collected insights and lessons learned from government, military, and non-governmental officials. Interviews were conducted by the Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training under a contract with the Institute of Peace. |
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US policy toward Afghanistan will require a fundamental change in order to achieve long-term stability in the country, according to The Future of Afghanistan, a new U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) collection of essays written by some of the world's top South Asia analysts. "A focused, coherent, and long-term approach to Afghan and regional stability is necessary to get Afghanistan out of its vicious cycle of insecurity, insurgency, impunity, and corruption" says the Institute's J. Alexander Thier, who edited the volume.
Countries: Afghanistan
| Issue Areas: Civil Society, Civil-Military Relations, Governance, Human Rights, Rule of Law
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While the U.S. and world economies are slowing markedly, Security Sector Reform (SSR) is a growth industry for the private sector. U.S. government employees may set SSR policy and design projects, but implementation is extensively outsourced to private contractors. |