As a national, nonpartisan, independent Institute, the U.S. Institute of Peace draws on our exceptional convening power to create opportunities for diverse audiences to exchange knowledge, experiences, and ideas necessary for creative solutions to difficult challenges. We serve as an important, neutral platform for bringing together government and nongovernment, diplomacy, security, and development actors, and participants across political views. The Institute’s events help shape public policy and priorities to advance peaceful solutions to conflict and strengthen international security.
In Afghanistan and Iraq, Congress provides oversight and resources for U.S. programs to reform local military and police forces. This process is critical to U.S. success, but is little understood. USIP's Security Sector Reform Working Group examined the role of Congress in ensuring that security assistance is effective, serves U.S interests and creates democratic security forces.
USIP's Daniel Brumberg joined a panel of guest speakers, including Congressman Keith Ellison, for a lively discussion of USIP's new volume "Conflict, Identity, and Reform in the Muslim World."
H.E. Ihsanoglu discussed OIC projects contributing to peacemaking and assessed the prospects of advancing U.S. - Islamic relations.
Two Iraqi members of parliament will discuss the future of the US-Iraqi relations and their assessment of the security agreement's implementation.
Sheikh Dr. Khalid al-Atiya, first deputy speaker of the Council of Representatives of Iraq, spoke about these challenging issues and answered questions from the audience.
Since the signing of the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) last year, which committed the U.S. to an unconditional withdrawal of U.S. on a three-year timeline, the withdrawal issue has receded from the American public debate about Iraq. President Obama has set his own timeline that fits comfortably within the SOFA. How much and how fast the U.S. leaves Iraq will nonetheless have a critical effect on U.S. strategic interests in the region. Some Iraqi leaders have publicly stated their openness...
During Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki’s visit to Washington, D.C. the prime minister left open the possibility of continuing the U.S. military presence in his country beyond 2011, when the current Status of Forces Agreement expires.
In 2007, the Los Angeles Times reported that Iraq's interior ministry (MOI) had become a "federation of oligarchs" where various floors were controlled by rival militias and power struggles were resolved by assassinations in the parking lot. Today, the MOI is responsible for nearly 500,000 members of Iraq's security forces, but still struggles despite major US and UK efforts. A panel of experts discussed the current situation in Iraq at a meeting of USIP's Security Sector Reform Working Group...
The coming year in Iraq will be critical. US forces are set to withdraw from Iraqi cities by the end of June, national elections are set for January 2010, and the potential for a decline in the security situation-recently showing signs of backsliding-remains high. A number of crucial questions remain to be resolved: Will Iraqi politics continue to move in a cross-sectarian, interests-based direction as we saw in the provincial elections, or will sectarian identity return as the primary organi...