Paul D. Williams | Authors | IPI Global Observatory

Can the AU and UN Work Together to Reform African Peace Operations?

September 19, 2017by Gustavo de Carvalho and Lesley Connolly

The appointment of a head and a deputy head of the AU’s newly formed Institutional Reforms Unit this month is an important step forward in increasing the organization’s effectiveness.

Changing the Narrative on Migration: Q&A with Louise Arbour

September 18, 2017by James Bowen

United Nations Special Representative on International Migration Louise Arbour discusses the human mobility challenges now facing policymakers and politicians.

UN Counterterrorism Reform: Now It’s the Security Council’s Turn

September 15, 2017by Eric Rosand

The creation of a first-ever UN Office of Counter-Terrorism and the appointment of the first full-time, under-secretary-general-level UN counterterrorism official—Russia’s Vladimir Ivanovich…

Challenges to Cultural Resilience in Island States

September 15, 2017by Carlisle Richardson

Cultural resilience of small island nation is impacted in at least four ways. These often have strong interactions with the more commonly noted vulnerabilities facing SIDS.

Compromise Is Key to Ending Togo’s Political Crisis

September 13, 2017by Festus Kofi Aubyn

While the huge numbers showed the frustrations with the ruling Union for the Republic, it is uncertain whether further demonstrations can cause meaningful change.

A US-China Entente Cordiale to Relieve the North Korean Headache

September 12, 2017by Lionel Fatton

Beijing has legitimate security concerns that need to be considered and to some extent respected.

The Venezuelan Crisis and Fragmented Multilateralism in the Americas

August 23, 2017by Stefano Palestini

It is futile to blame the crisis for the shortcomings of multilateral instruments; at the end of the day, were these mechanisms not designed precisely to solve complex crises?

Women in the Islamic State: Tactical Advantage Trumps Ideology

August 21, 2017by Jennifer Philippa Eggert

Even compared with other contemporary violent Islamist groups, ISIS is particularly gender-conservative.

Reflections on the Meaning of “Sustaining Peace”

July 17, 2017by Gert Rosenthal

What is somewhat worrying is the fact that there still is an ongoing debate over what is meant by “sustainable peace.”

The Cyprus Negotiations: What Went Wrong?

July 11, 2017by Gregoris Ioannou

The fact that Greece and Turkey were directly involved in the process through their foreign ministers allowed them to at least partially subsume the Cyprus peace process within the broader frame of Greco-Turkish relations.

The Dynamics of Peacekeeping Budget Cuts: The Case of MONUSCO

July 10, 2017by Katharina P. Coleman

The challenge in financing negotiations is to find a balance between national political priorities and the operational imperatives in peacekeeping missions, given the mandates set by the Security Council and the strategic…

Can Somalia Find the Debt Relief Necessary for Development?

July 6, 2017by Ilya Gridneff

Despite the goodwill, or general belief that debt relief is critical for Somalia’s development, key international partners still need to fully embrace the process.

“Diaspora as Partners”: The Canadian Model of Countering Violent Extremism

July 5, 2017by Geoff Burt and Matt Cohen

The first lesson of the Canadian model is that the government has an important role to play in supporting academic and policy research.

Mali: Two Years After Bamako Agreement, What Peace Is There to Keep?

June 22, 2017by Arthur Boutellis and Marie-Joëlle Zahar

The interim authorities will need to be made operational—with competent staff and adequate financial means—so that they can start providing services to northern populations ahead of the…

Data Analysis: The Roots of Popular Mobilization in Ethiopia

June 16, 2017by Margaux Pinaud and Clionadh Raleigh

Available data collected from international and local media since November 2015 points to more than 1,200 people reported killed during the protests.

Could China’s Diplomatic Proposal Break the North Korean Deadlock?

June 7, 2017by Lionel Fatton

Beijing is eager to show the new American administration its centrality in dealing with North Korea, while pointing out the negative consequences of what it considers as undue military pressure…

South Sudan: What Options Remain?

May 10, 2017by John L. Hirsch

Absent some unforeseen new initiative, or the fulfillment of those initiatives currently underway, any prospect of improving the lives of the South Sudanese in the foreseeable future unfortunately seems remote.

A Year of “Sustaining Peace”: What Was Learned from Burundi and The Gambia?

April 27, 2017by Lesley Connolly

Both Burundi and The Gambia offer a chance to connect prevention to elections in particular, and to adapt new thinking around the role of prevention to…

A New African Model of Coercion? Assessing the ECOWAS Mission in The Gambia

March 16, 2017by Paul D. Williams

So far, ECOMIG’s deployment appears to be a successful case of coercion engineered through the coordinated activities of ECOWAS, the AU, and the UN Security Council.

Paying for AMISOM: Are Politics and Bureaucracy Undermining the AU’s Largest Peace Operation?

January 11, 2017by Paul D. Williams

Changes to financing have had the…

Author: Paul D. Williams

Dealing With Disengaged Fighters: The Case of al-Shabaab

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