The week of June 22–26, 2026, set a milestone in the United Nations’ institutional calendar: the first-ever UN Peacebuilding Week, convened in New York alongside the 20th anniversary of the UN peacebuilding architecture. Throughout the week, discussions were grounded in the 2018 UN–World Bank Pathways for Peace report, the 2023 New Agenda for Peace, the […]
Author: Emebet Getachew Abate, Sara Tadesse Gebremariam
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In November 2025, the UN Security Council and General Assembly unanimously adopted twin resolutions (A/RES/80/11 and S/RES/2805) on the UN peacebuilding architecture review (PBAR). In the resolutions, member states decided to establish an annual “peacebuilding week” in June with the aim of “raising awareness” of the UN’s peacebuilding and sustaining peace work, “fostering inclusive dialogue […]
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The typical account of how the United Nations picks its secretary-general gives the predominant role to the five permanent members of the Security Council (the P5). This is correct, but it risks missing the important role of the ten elected members of the council (the E10). Each permanent member can stop a candidate using their […]
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The lives and livelihoods of local communities in the borderlands of the Lake Chad Basin are disrupted by both climate change and conflict, which are mutually reinforcing. Conflict undermines social cohesion and public trust and degrades the ability of communities to adapt to the effects of climate change. At the same time, climate change adds […]
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It may seem like a dissonant moment to have a ministerial conference on feminist foreign policy (FFP) given the well-funded and growing backlash against women’s rights and a recent wave of prominent countries abandoning their FFPs. However, to many, including the global feminist civil society community, this might be the exact right moment for such […]
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The UN secretary-general’s UN80 initiative was initially intended to mark and celebrate the UN’s 80th anniversary but quickly became the moniker for UN reform. Much has been written about the initiative, and the UN publishes regular updates on its website. Of UN80’s three workstreams—efficiencies in the UN Secretariat, the mandate implementation review, and structural changes […]
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On Wednesday, the Security Council will convene a high-level debate on “Advancing Political Solutions in the Middle East: Mediation and Dialogue for Lasting Peace.” Secretary-General António Guterres is expected to brief. The meeting is a fitting occasion to ask a simple question: Who will actually be doing the job of mediating in the Middle East […]
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More than a year into the UN80 reform process, much of the work has already been done. Mandates have been reviewed, overlaps identified, reporting lines clarified, and administrative efficiencies pursued.In a complex, member state–driven institution, this is no small accomplishment. Reform at scale in the United Nations is rare, and reform that survives intergovernmental scrutiny […]
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There is something strange about a State Department statement that announces a non-event. On May 11th, three days after the second International Migration Review Forum (IMRF) closed at UN headquarters, Washington publicly informed the world that it had not been present and would not associate itself with the progress declaration the forum’s other participants had […]
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In February 1998, with the United States preparing to bomb Iraq over Saddam Hussein’s refusal to cooperate with UN weapons inspectors, Kofi Annan flew to Baghdad. The risk of failure was high: he did not have a formal mandate to negotiate, the Americans were skeptical, and Hussein was unpredictable. He had been secretary-general for barely […]
