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Publications
Articles, publications, books, tools and multimedia features from the U.S. Institute of Peace provide the latest news, analysis, research findings, practitioner guides and reports, all related to the conflict zones and issues that are at the center of the Institute’s work to prevent and reduce violent conflict.
U.S. Afghanistan Veterans Recall the Costs of War
When we estimate the costs of wars, our guesses can render figures too vast and numbing to really grasp. Brown University’s Costs of War project estimates that wars since 2001 involving U.S. forces have cost $4.8 trillion, 370,000 people killed in direct violence and nearly 1.2 million dead when indirect causes are counted. At the U.S. Institute of Peace on Feb. 22, a prominent journalist and U.S. combat veterans focused on a tiny but dramatic subset of costs—the price paid by these former soldiers when they were sent a decade ago to a perilous corner of Afghanistan.
“A Veteran is more than a Soldier or Marine” -- Honoring All
On November 11th, America will observe Veteran’s Day, so named in 1954 by President Eisenhower. For 35 years, Americans had celebrated Armistice Day in recognition of the end of World War I, and as a day dedicated to the “cause of world peace.” Following the massive mobilizations and sacrifices of World War II and the Korean War, however, Congress renamed Armistice Day as Veteran’s Day, and by so doing honored the millions more who had sacrificed for the common good.
Iraqi Prime Minister Maliki Urges Greater U.S. Support
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, in an October 31 address at the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) in Washington, called for more support from the United States in countering an ongoing wave of terrorism in Iraq that has been attributed primarily to al-Qaida-backed extremists, as well as for American patience as Iraq tries to build its young democracy amid the country’s deep internal political disputes.
Food Insecurity’s Impact on Conflict Merits a Closer Look
A new report from the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars illuminates the connections between conflict and food insecurity admirably, even as it recognizes that considerable work remains to be done on how food-related problems actually promote or alter conflict.
Croatia’s EU Entry This Week Raises Questions for the Neighbors
Croatia celebrated across continents on July 1 to mark its official entry into the European Union. But it wasn’t surprising that a panel discussion at USIP to discuss the country’s 18-year path from war to European integration ended up focusing mostly on the countries still left on the fringes.
Bringing Peace to a War
Colonel Paul Hughes reflects on USIP's presence in Baghdad facilitating inter-ethnic and inter-religious dialogue, conducting conflict resolution activities, supporting rule of law programs, and training Iraqi leaders in democratic principles.
Overcoming Obstacles to Peace
The U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) hosted a panel on March 18 to discuss the findings of “Overcoming Obstacles to Peace: Local Factors in Nation Building,” a new RAND Corporation book that lays out data-based evidence on how international interventions can build more peaceful nations.
USIP, ROA Hold Forum on “Training for War and Fragile Peace”
The U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) and the Reserve Officers Association held a joint program on Capitol Hill on February 12 to explore new education and training approaches to help U.S. troops better prepare for complex missions in fragile and conflict states.
USIP Trains Afghanistan-Bound Unit of Army’s 101st Airborne
For the first time, the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP) has sent a team of its conflict-management specialists to train an entire U.S. military unit preparing to deploy to a war zone—Afghanistan.
USIP Contributes to Special Operations Summit
Paul Hughes, the U.S. Institute of Peace’s chief of staff, recently delivered a major lecture at the 2012 Special Operations Summit in Tampa, Fla., on best practices and new tools for post-conflict peacekeeping and stability operations.