Countries & Continents

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In spite of prolonged and chronic internal armed conflict, limited advances in peacebuilding have been realized in Colombia, including demobilization of paramilitaries. USIP is working on a number of initiatives, including ecumenical peacemaking in Colombia, the Cucuta Peacebuilding and Training Network and targeted investments in local peacebuilding projects.

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The Institute seeks to present a balanced approach to its work relating to Arab-Israeli relations by supporting research, programs and grants that improve understanding, develop capacity and analyze the issues in ways that can be useful to all parties who are seeking peace.

 

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Nigeria faces a host of internal problems that threaten its political legitimacy and stability: the growing violence in the oil rich Niger Delta; ethno-religious struggles; and political conflict that manifests in electoral violence and the struggle for political advantage. Nigeria’s size, its political importance and its oil reserves mean that a large-scale crisis in the country will have negative consequences far beyond its borders.

USIP is working to address the interrelated roots of Nigeria’s conflicts in all three arenas of conflict, with an emphasis on Niger Delta, which is the principal flash point and source of insecurity.

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Arab-Israeli relations have deteriorated to their lowest point in a generation, with intensifying and widening violence. However, the severity of the problems may drive the parties to reconsider long-stagnant issues and create opportunities for new efforts to resolve the conflict. In order to seize on the prospects for renewing negotiations, USIP is conducting both policy-relevant analysis and innovative programming in support of local initiatives to build support for peace.

 

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For the past 17 years Somalia has been without an effective central government and most of the country has been in turmoil. Several peace conferences have been held and interim governments have been named, but none has gained legitimacy. Widespread violence, hunger and displacement plague the Somali population. Based on an agreement mediated by the UN in 2008 a more inclusive parliament and executive have been selected, but an insurgency persists & the political outlook is far from clear.

 

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After twenty-six years of civil war, in May 2009, the Government of Sri Lanka announced it had defeated the separatist group the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).  While Sri Lanka has subsequently entered a post-war stage, it is not yet a post-conflict state.  A future of sustained peace in Sri Lanka requires a political settlement reached through an inclusive process to address the grievances of the Sri Lanka’s minority Tamil and Muslim communities.

Sudan faces challenges on many fronts, among them an ongoing conflict in Darfur, a fragile Comprehensive Peace Agreement between the north and south that ended decades of civil war, and upcoming nationwide elections at every level of government in 2010 (the first elections since 1986).  The US Institute of Peace is engaging all of these issues in an effort to help build a more stable Sudan.