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.
From Détente to Meltdown
As "self-defense forces" storm Ukrainian bases in Crimea and Russian President Vladimir Putin embraces the peninsula's return to the Russian Motherland, Moscow's adventurism is creating a dangerous ripple effect far beyond the cold shores of Crimea. With Russia, the United States, and Europe dancing around the abyss of a new Cold War, Moscow's cooperation in resolving other international disputes will be severely tested. The first casualty of the Crimea debacle could be the ongoing efforts of...
The Big Chill
The sanctions that were placed on Bank Rossiya on Friday, March 21, have sent shock waves through Russian business and financial circles. In the intervening days, hundreds of thousands of Russians have lost access to Visa and MasterCard services. Russian oligarchs have stopped boasting that they are on the U.S. blacklist as international bankers and have begun to shy away from their businesses -- and their access to credit dried up while their stock prices tumbled. Russian owners of mining, m...
When Sanctions Aren't Enough
It should be clear now that the West has a Russian security problem. Twice in the last six years, the Kremlin has seized territory in a neighboring country on the grounds of protecting minorities or ethnic Russians and Russian speakers. In each instance, the rejoinder from the West proved to be inadequate. Now, this threat demands a broad response that goes beyond the steps taken to date, that will deter the Kremlin from further aggression.
America the Gentle Giant
Vladimir Putin's cynical efforts to annex Crimea and intimidate the fledgling government of Ukraine make it all too clear that naked aggression in world affairs is not a thing of the past. The United States and its allies must respond firmly when such aggression occurs. But there are other perhaps less dramatic instances of resorting to force of arms. These include unresolved disputes between states -- or ethnic, tribal, and religious disputes within states -- that degenerate into armed confl...
'Never Again' Isn’t Enough
The 20th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide offers an opportune moment to reflect on the horrific events of 1994, and honor the countless victims and survivors who still carry the collective trauma of mass murder. Remembering these deliberate efforts to extinguish an entire ethnic community should not only give us pause, but also encourage our atrocity prevention community, including humanitarian and peace organizations around the world, to rethink how such failures of humanity can guide us ...
Syrian Opposition Leader Jarba Appeals for U.S. Understanding, Weapons
Syrian Opposition Coalition leader Ahmad Jarba, giving his first official address in the U.S., appealed for Americans to understand the movement's fight for "dignity," and for the Obama administration to provide the weapons rebels need to thwart the regime's barrel bombs that are "making our lives a nightmare."
How to Beat a Russian Occupation with Flash Mobs
As separatists in eastern Ukraine stage demonstrations and occupy government buildings, calling for Russian annexation, there is renewed anxiety about the 40,000 Russian troops massed along the border. The prospect of Russian incursion raises the question of how Ukrainians -- outnumbered, outgunned, and more than likely unsupported by Western militaries -- might be able to resist. Though there have been murmurs of Moscow's troops being met with a guerilla campaign, Ukrainians best hope for ch...
Q&A: South Sudan’s Violence
Leaders involved in South Sudan’s conflict signed a ceasefire agreement late last week in the second such effort to end violence that has beset the world’s newest independent nation. Jon Temin, USIP’s director of Africa programs, discusses the conflict, international approaches to encourage a resolution and strategies to help move the country forward.
USIP’s Hadley Scans Conflict Horizon for Civilian Solutions
U.S. Institute of Peace Board Chairman and former National Security Advisor Stephen J. Hadley said shifts in the nature of conflict worldwide demand sophisticated, long-term strategies to address conflicts from Europe to the Middle East to Asia.
“Peace Conferences Don’t Always Work” and Other Lessons for Achieving Sustainable Peace in South Sudan and Sudan
The recent re-eruption of political violence in South Sudan in late 2013 has not only inflamed long-standing and unresolved local grievances, but also highlights the critical need to improve the impact and sustainability of local peace processes in any region. In the new Peaceworks, “Local Peace Processes in Sudan and South Sudan,” USIP’s Jacqueline H. Wilson outlines the importance of understanding and improving local peace processes.