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.
Episode 18 - Jesse Pruett
This episode features Jesse Pruett, a veteran of 20 years of military and government service. In this interview, Jesse Pruett shares his personal experiences with tactical negotiations, stalemates, and coordination with civilian/military bodies and interagency collaboration.
Episode 17 - Steven Donaldson
In this episode, we are joined by Colonel Steven Donaldson, Joint Provost Marshall for the Military District of Washington and Joint Forces Headquarters at Fort McNair. The interview explores Steven’s experiences with negotiation when confronted with strict hierarchies, stalemates, and counterparts without authority.
Episode 16 - Andrea Harrison
In this episode, we speak with Andrea Harrison who serves as deputy legal advisor of the Washington Delegation of the International Committee of the Red Cross. She shares with us the role the ICRC plays in international conflict as while providing some legal frameworks and terminology to help us understand the world of international humanitarian law.
Nonformal Dialogues in National Peacemaking
Nonformal dialogues offer complementary approaches to formal dialogues in national peacemaking efforts in contexts of conflict. As exemplified by the nonformal dialogues in Myanmar, Lebanon, and Nepal examined in this report, nonformal dialogues are able to...
Carla Koppell on Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security
Carla Koppell discusses U.N. Security Council Resolution 1325 for the protection of women and girls, and gives her analysis about the work still needs to be done to include women in peace negotia
Afghan Taliban Views on Legitimate Islamic Governance
Since their return to power in August 2021, Taliban leaders have not yet articulated a clear vision of how they plan to structure the Afghan state. Some observers have expressed guarded optimism that the Taliban can be persuaded to move away from the more authoritarian and illiberal aspects of their first regime. This report is intended to help these negotiators—whether from the international community or Afghan civil society—find possible compromises between the Taliban’s vision of “true” Islamic governance and liberal democracy and respect for human rights.
Dissent and Dialogue: The Role of Mediation in Nonviolent Uprisings
While both mediation and nonviolent resistance have been the subject of significant scholarly work, the connection of the two fields has received less attention. Using newly collected data on nonviolent uprisings Africa from the Mediation in Nonviolent Campaigns data set, this report explores several questions: When does mediation occur in the context of nonviolent campaigns? Who tends to mediate? What are the challenges, and what are the outcomes? The study offers overall takeaways, policy conclusions, and recommendations for future research.
Negotiating Civil Resistance
Reviewing the literature on negotiation and civil resistance, this report examines the current divide between the two and digs deeper to identify the fundamental convergences. It builds on these findings to illustrate why negotiations and negotiation concepts are essential to the success of civil resistance campaigns. Using historical examples, it then examines the dynamics of negotiation in the context of these strategic domains.
North Korea and the Need for a US-ROK-PRC Dialogue
North Korea has advanced weapons of mass destruction programs but poor WMD security, and tensions in the region are growing in response to increasing brinkmanship between Pyongyang and Washington. This report identifies the major challenges...
Tajikistan’s Peace Process: The Role of Track 2 Diplomacy and Lessons for Afghanistan
The peace process that ended the Tajik civil war in the late 1990s successfully combined both official and civic channels of communication and negotiation from its start. This report argues that although the agreement and its implementation were far from perfect, the Tajik experience contains valuable lessons on power-sharing arrangements, reconciliation, reintegration, and demobilization for the architects of future peace processes, and provides important insights into the shortcomings of the 2018–21 peace process in neighboring Afghanistan.