Ceasefire as a Fig Leaf for Carnage and Confusion

Posted by & filed under Regions and Powers

Cemetery in Aleppo hit by bombs.

Just a couple of weeks ago, Aleppo was seen as a crucial battlefield in the Syrian civil war and was compared with Sarajevo as a tragedy of intolerable proportions not only by hard-hitting journalists but also by such responsible politicians as Michael Fallon, UK Defence Secretary. Yet presently, this devastated city is portrayed as the main beneficiary of the ceasefire deal negotiated by US State Secretary John Kerry and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, and announced with due solemnity by President Vladimir Putin. The proposals for enforcing a no-fly zone and for punishing Russia with more sanctions appear to be overtaken by the fortunate turn of events. In fact, however, this idea may turn out to be too soft – and at the same time quite irrelevant for the US policy of containing the Syrian catastrophe. It certainly takes two for this awkward tango, but the partners have very different plans for further pirouettes.

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New Developments in Drone Proliferation: How Africa was Deployed to Rescue Drones

Posted by & filed under Humanitarianism, Regions and Powers

Photo: Google project X

Debates on global drone proliferation tend to assume that adoption and adaptation of drones follow a universal logic and that the drone industry is a singular thing, geographically concentrated in the Global North. In this blog post I argue that these assumptions make it difficult to critically assess the growth in drone use across Africa. I suggest that one way to think about African drone proliferation is by considering the way drones and Africa are being construed as solutions to each other’s problems: drones are seen as a game changer for develop­ment and security, while in return Africa inspire new and innovative use of drones. The percep­tion of Africa as being in need of external drone intervention dovetails with the drone industry’s efforts to identify and promote good uses for drones — efforts that are central to increasing the legitimacy of drones in the eyes of a skeptical global public. Here I want to highlight three key issues related to drone proliferation in Africa.

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This Week in South Sudan – Week 7

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Monday 15 February A least five people were killed and several houses burned in Wau County, Western Bahr al Ghazal State, during clashes between government forces and armed men at Bisselia area. The SPLA allegedly closed the supply route between the Malakal Protection of Civilian (PoC) site and Wau Shilluk on the opposite bank of… Read more »

With Russia overextended elsewhere, Arctic cooperation gets a new chance

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Can the United States and Russia actually cooperate in the Arctic? It might seem like wishful thinking, given that Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev asserted that there is in fact a “New Cold War” between the two countries in a speech at the Munich Security Conference. Many people—at that conference and elsewhere—see the idea as far-fetched. Sure, Russia is… Read more »

The Iranian Nuclear Issue

Posted by & filed under Law and Ethics, Regions and Powers

I have been tracking the Iranian nuclear issue for about ten years. Important in its own right, this issue also has significant implications for the international agenda on nuclear weapons disarmament.

Let it be noted at the outset that the expression in question – “Iranian Nuclear Issue” – is a freighted one; it suggests the problem rested squarely with Iran, that the other countries involved (the P5 + 1 or more accurately the E3+3) were responding to a problem of Iranian making.

Things were never so simple, as the issue was as much or perhaps even more a European and especially a US problem with Iran, namely a set of perceptions about the intentions of the Iranian leadership regarding its nuclear enrichment program.

Iran nuclear deal: agreement in Vienna, July 2015. From left to right: Foreign ministers/secretaries of state Wang Yi (China), Laurent Fabius (France), Frank-Walter Steinmeier (Germany), Federica Mogherini (EU), Mohammad Javad Zarif (Iran), Philip Hammond (UK), John Kerry (USA). Foto: Dragan Tatic for Bundesministerium für Europa.

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This Week in South Sudan – Week 6

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Tuesday 9 February People in Boro Medina in Western Bahr el Ghazal State have confirmed sightings of elements from the Lord’s Resistance Army out in the bush. The SPLM/A (IO) accused the government of military build-up in Jonglei State. Foreign Policy: ‘After Madaya, Will the World Watch South Sudan Starve Too?’ Wednesday 10 February So… Read more »

The Women, Peace and Security Agenda – 15 Years On

Posted by & filed under Gender

The Global Study on the Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325.

Members of the UN Security Council adopt a new resolution on Women and peace and security in October 2015. UN Photo

In the context of the UN and global governance, 2015 was truly ‘a year of reviews’. The Global Study on the implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security (UNSCR 1325) was one of three major peace and security reviews completed last year, the other two being the reviews on UN peace operations and UN peacebuilding architecture. This policy brief summarizes some of the main findings and recommendations of the Global Study, and points to some key areas of concern regarding the next phase of the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda.Read More

This Week in South Sudan – Week 5

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Monday 1 February The situation in South Sudan is worsening according to a new African Union The report blames both the SPLA and the SPLA (IO) for the declining humanitarian situation. Government forces and the SPLA (IO) traded accusations over new clashes in Mundri, Western Equatoria State. The government welcomed IGAD’s call to form a… Read more »

Brazil: an Emerging Southern Drone Actor

Posted by & filed under Humanitarianism

This blog post uses the case of Brazil to reflect on how actors in the Global South now engage with drone technology. This technology has been employed across a series of areas where Brazilian stakeholders are involved or seek to become more involved, both at the domestic and international levels: from aiding the work of the police and military to supporting environmental and health agencies and contributing to agriculture, mining, energy production and construction activities.

Drones have been used by the Brazilian Armed Forces in the UN peacekeeping operation in Haiti. Credit: Joel Silva/ Folhapress

So far, the academic debate on drone development and deployment has been focused on actors in the Global North while countries, communities and individuals in the Global South are mostly portrayed as targets or as victims of drone interventions. Comparatively, little attention has been given to the increasing use of drones by Southern civil society, government and private sector actors. Discussions of drone proliferation tend to assume that the drone industry is a monolithic and geographically concentrated entity. While the drone industry is still dominated by major players from the United States and Israel, countries like Brazil are claiming a more proactive role, not only merely as consumers, but also as developers and exporters of drone technology.

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The Gender Asset in Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Processes (DDR)

Posted by & filed under Gender, Peacebuilding

Regrouping of ex-combatants in Nepal. Photo: Chiranjibi Bhandari

The Potentials of Changing Gender Patterns.

Both genders – female and male – can be actors as well as victims in armed conflict, depending on the context.

Changed gender roles among ex-combatants of armed groups constitute a potential source of change towards more balanced gender relations in the larger post-conflict society.

It is necessary to take into account the particular needs of victims of armed conflict, but it is equally important to bear in mind that female and male conflict actors also represent resources that bring their new skills and experiences into the post-conflict situation.

  • Changing gender roles during armed conflict can be an asset in a post-conflict situation.
  • Skills acquired by female and male ex-combatants during conflict should be documented and acknowledged during the DDR process for constructive use in peacetime.
  • Family ties constitute a pull factor of male demobilization and should be actively used in efforts to change violent models of masculinity.
  • Soldiers of both genders with a long history in an armed group tend to develop a common identity and to benefit from reintegration programs that allow them to stay together in post-conflict communities.

Read more in a recent policy brief from the PRIO Centre on Gender, Peace and Security.