About 150 leading policymakers, scholars, diplomats, and NGO leaders participated in an all-day conference entitled "Preventing Violent Conflict: Principles, Policies and Practice," organized by the U.S. Institute of Peace's Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention on July 1, 2010.

About 150 leading policymakers, scholars, diplomats, and NGO leaders participated in an all-day conference entitled "Preventing Violent Conflict: Principles, Policies and Practice," organized by the U.S. Institute of Peace's Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention on July 1, 2010.

Recognizing that conflict prevention is widely endorsed in principle—including in the new National Security Strategy—but too rarely put into serious practice, this conference was designed to help narrow the gap between rhetoric and action in preventing violent conflicts. The central focus of the conference was on the unique challenges and opportunities associated with preventing the initial onset of large-scale violence- what is sometimes called primary prevention.

The keynote address was given by Ambassador Mary C. Yates, Senior Adviser for Strategic Planning at the National Security Council. The first panel on regional challenges highlighted the potential conflicts that are at risk of breaking out in various regions. The second panel focused on how preventive strategies should address critical cross-cutting challenges such as governance, weapons proliferation and economic drivers of conflict. The final panel reflected on global conflict prevention initiatives by the UN, U.S., regional and subregional organizations, and civil society.

The conference was followed by a tribute to Dr. David Hamburg, president emeritus of the Carnegie Corporation, which attracted a high-level turnout including Senator Richard Lugar.

Multimedia

09:00am Welcome by Dr. Richard H. Solomon, President,USIP

09:15am Keynote Address by Amb. Mary C. Yates, Special Assistant to the President and Senior Director for Strategic Planning and Institutional Reform, NationalSecurity Council

10:00am Break

10:15am Panel 1: Regional Challenges

  • Amb. Marc Grossman - Chair
    Vice Chairman, Cohen Group
  • Amb. William Bellamy
    Director, Africa Center for Strategic Studies, National Defense University
  • Dr. John Park
    Senior ResearchAssociate, USIP
  • Dr. Nikolas Gvosdev
    Professor, U.S. Naval War College
  • Peter Hakim
    President Emeritus, Inter-AmericanDialogue
  • Dr. Shibley Telhami
    Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development, University of Maryland

12:15pm Lunch Break (lunch will be provided to participants)

1:15pm Panel 2: Cross-cutting Challenges

  • Amb. Nancy Soderberg - Chair
    President, Connect U.S. Fund
  • Clare Lockhart
    CEO, Institute for State Effectiveness
  • Dr. Ramesh Thakur
    Professor, University of Waterloo
  • Paul Hughes
    Senior Program Officer, USIP

2:45pm Break

3:00pm Panel 3: Global Conflict Prevention Initiatives

  • Tara Sonenshine - Chair
    Executive Vice president, USIP
  • Dr. Edward C. Luck
    Special Adviser to the Secretary-General, United Nations
  • Heather Conley
    Director and Senior Fellow, CSIS
  • Amb. John E. Herbst
    Coordinator for Reconstruction and Stabilization, U.S. Department of State
  • Peter Van Tuijl
    Executive Director,ECCP/GPPAC GlobalSecretariat
  • Lawrence Woocher
    Senior Program Officer, USIP

5:15pm Conclusions by Dr. Abiodun Williams, Vice President,Center for Conflict Analysis and Prevention, USIP

5:30pm Tribute to Dr. David Hamburg,President Emeritus of the Carnegie Corporation

Related Publications

As Myanmar’s Junta Loses Control in the North, China’s Influence Grows

As Myanmar’s Junta Loses Control in the North, China’s Influence Grows

Thursday, August 1, 2024

Earlier this year, China brokered talks between Myanmar’s military and an alliance of ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) that handed the army its worst defeat in history. The negotiations’ goal was to restore overland trade — interrupted by fighting — between China’s Yunnan Province and Myanmar. To China’s frustration, the talks collapsed in mid-May, and in late June the alliance reopened its anti-junta offensive.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

China, Philippines Have Big Disagreements Over Their Recent Deal

China, Philippines Have Big Disagreements Over Their Recent Deal

Thursday, July 25, 2024

China and the Philippines this weekend reached a deal aimed at reducing their growing tensions over Second Thomas Shoal. The agreement comes as maritime confrontations have been increasing in frequency and intensity, raising fears of a broader conflict that could lead to the Philippines invoking its mutual defense treaty with the United States. While the deal could be a key step to reducing tensions, messaging from both Beijing and Manila suggests that both sides still firmly maintain their positions on the disputed waters, and that they see the agreement’s provisions in fundamentally different ways.

Type: Question and Answer

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

What the Houthi-Israel Exchange Might Mean for Escalation in the Middle East

What the Houthi-Israel Exchange Might Mean for Escalation in the Middle East

Wednesday, July 24, 2024

The Middle East saw yet another escalatory episode over the weekend, as Israel and Yemen’s Houthis exchanged fire. On July 19, the Iran-backed Houthis launched an unprecedented drone attack on Israel, which hit an apartment building in downtown Tel Aviv, killing one and injuring at least 10 others. It was the first time that the Houthis killed or even harmed an Israeli, despite launching dozens of missile attacks on Israel since October 7. The next day, Israel struck back with an airstrike on the strategic port of Hodeida, marking the first time it attacked Yemen. The Israeli attack killed six, injured dozens more and left ablaze key oil facilities in the area.

Type: Question and Answer

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

The Red Sea Crisis Goes Beyond the Houthis

The Red Sea Crisis Goes Beyond the Houthis

Friday, July 19, 2024

The Red Sea is in crisis. At the center of the storm are Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who have unleashed a wave of attacks on ships traversing one of the world’s most pivotal maritime straits, putatively in support of Hamas’s war against Israel. The Houthi gambit in the Red Sea is imposing serious costs on global trade, as did the problem of Somali piracy, which reached its peak in 2010. The United States and some of its allies have stepped in to militarily suppress the threat, bombing Houthi positions inside Yemen. But although this episode is illustrative of the difficulties of Red Sea security, the crisis extends far beyond the trouble emanating from Yemen.

Type: Analysis

Conflict Analysis & Prevention

View All Publications