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.
Achieving Durable Peace in Afghanistan
The July deadline for the beginning of a drawdown of American troops from Afghanistan is looming, and the debate in Washington is increasingly focused now on how reconciliation and reintegration efforts will affect the long-term peace process. Experts from Capitol Hill, Kabul and Washington think tanks gathered at USIP on June 13 to discuss how to build a “durable peace” in Afghanistan.
Promoting Stability and Resolving Provincial Disputes in Afghanistan
Currently numerous disputes at the local level are unresolved in Afghanistan, leading to local instability, a growing distance between the government and people and encouraging communities to turn to the Taliban. In March 2010, USIP began working with local elders, government officials (particularly governors and officials from the Ministry of Tribal Affairs) and religious figures to address a range of disputes in Nangarhar and Kunar provinces in eastern Afghanistan.
Peace in Sudan
USIP’s Andrew Blum and Jon Temin discuss the recent troubling developments in Sudan and why there are renewed concerns about prospects for peace in Sudan.
Libyan Forces Use Rape as Weapon of War, Experts Say
While opposition fighters struggle to tip the balance against Libyan leader Col. Muammar al-Qaddafi’s forces, a growing number of women living in rebel strongholds are allegedly being raped by members of the Libyan military.
China and the United States
While China continues to call for US respect of its core interests as a means toward greater cooperation on the Korean Peninsula and global climate change, the United States prefers an immediate focus on cooperating on those common concerns. A leading Chinese scholar examines how these differences can be bridged to build a genuine partnership.
Toward a New Republic of Sudan
The exclusionary governance that led South Sudan to secede from the rest of Sudan continues to bedevil the government of the new Republic of Sudan to the north. Both the July secession and the Arab Spring could provide the impetus the ruling party needs to lead national governance reforms and to engage its diverse citizenry in making a new constitution.
Iraq's al-Sadr Movement
USIP’s Elie Abouaoun, based in the Institute’s Baghdad office, discusses the al-Sadr movement – and why it once again stands to be a destabilizing force in Iraq and region.
USIP's Afghan Rule of Law at Work: Strengthening Long-Term Security
USIP was among the first organizations to focus on law and justice issues in Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks and the U.S.-led campaign against the Taliban and al-Qaida in 2001. Since 2002, USIP has been studying traditional dispute resolution in the country.
Laws of War
An American Red Cross survey released this spring shows that 59 percent of American youth believe there are times when it is “acceptable” to torture the enemy. And only one in five American youth is familiar with the Geneva Conventions, last revised in 1949, that define the way civilians and military personnel are to be treated in war.
Afghan Perspectives on Achieving Durable Peace
This brief outlines key findings from the first phase of research on Afghan stakeholder views on the conflict. The author worked in Afghanistan for the World Bank and the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit from 2005-2010, and has researched governance and peace processes in Southeast Asia, Central America and Afghanistan.