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The Nordic countries have long been renowned for their contribution to international peace and security. This contribution – occasionally viewed by both Nordic and non-Nordic policy-makers and academics as a particular model for facilitating peace and development in international affairs – is based on a combination of active contributions to peaceful conflict resolution, a high level of development aid and a continuous commitment to strengthening international society. However, recently Scandinavians have been making headlines for reasons that seem to contrast with their well-established brand as humane internationalist peacemakers. This article identifies the characteristics of the Nordic model for international peace and security and discusses how and why it has changed.

Maģistra darba mērķis ir izvērtēt Āfrikas Savienības (ĀS) nozīmi miera un drošības uzturēšanā, darba sākumā izvirzot apgalvojumu, ka ĀS lielākie izaicinājumi miera uzturēšanā un konfliktu risināšanā ir nespēja nodrošināt nepieciešamo resursu mobilizāciju un spēku ģenerēšanu. Darba teorētiskajā ietvarā tiek aplūkoti miera uzturēšanas un konfliktu pārvaldības principi, kā arī reģionālo organizāciju loma miera uzturēšanā. Darba tālākajā gaitā tiek aplūkoti drošības izaicinājumi Āfrikā, ĀS izveides vēsturiskais konteksts un tās galvenie darbības principi un miera uzturēšanas un konfliktu pārvaldības instrumenti. Pētījuma analīzes daļā tiek izvērtētas ĀS miera uzturēšanas misijas Burundi, Sudānā un Somālijā, analizējot ĀS ieguldījumu šo konfliktu risināšanā. Darba noslēgumā tika apkopoti ĀS miera un drošības uzturēšanas ierobežojumi un izaicinājumi. ; The main aim of this thesis is to assess the role of the African Union (AU) in the maintenance of peace and security in Africa. This study focuses on the argument that the main challenge affecting the AU's peacekeeping and conflict resolution capabilities is the inability to provide the necessary resource mobilization and force generation. The theoretical basis of this thesis consists of peacekeeping, conflict management and resolution principles, as well as the role of regional organizations in the maintenance of peace and security. Further discussed topics are the security challenges in Africa, the establishment of the AU, as well as its key operating principles and peacekeeping and conflict management tools. The analysis section focuses on the AU peacekeeping missions in Burundi, Sudan and Somalia, which were selected to evaluate the role of the AU.

Abstract in English:From Cold War to Hot Peace: An American Ambassador in Putin's RussiaGeir Flikke reviews the book "From Cold War to Hot Peace: An American Ambassador in Putin's Russia" by Michael McFaul.

Vi har omfattende forskningslitteraturer om hvordan norsk utenrikspolitikk på begynnelsen av 1900-årene kretset om fred, og om fremveksten og institusjonaliseringen av norsk freds- og forsoningsdiplomati fra midten av 1980-årene og til i dag. Vår kunnskap om den mellomliggende perioden og røttene til fredsdiplomatiet er mer mangelfull. Artikkelen sammenfatter det vi vet, og den presenterer en tidligere ukjent case fra 1966–1968, det såkalte Nobel-initiativet, der en gruppe norske borgere gikk sammen om å mobilisere nobelprisvinnere med sikte på å etablere en bakkanal for fredssamtaler mellom USA og Nord-Vietnam. Samfunnsinitiativet fikk helhjertet oppslutning fra den norske stat. Nobel-initiativet er dermed en forløper for det samarbeidet mellom stat og samfunn som skulle prege norsk freds- og forsoningsdiplomati. Gitt at vi også finner løse forelegg for freds- og forsoningsdiplomati i 1920-årene, gjør kunnskapen om Nobel-initiativet det mulig å påstå at vi gjennom det siste hundreåret konsistent finner norsk freds- og foroningsdiplomati i den utstrekning og den form som de internasjonale forholdene tillater.
Abstract in English:The Nobel Initiative from 1966 and the Long Lines in Norwegian Peace and Reconciliation DiplomacyNorway was the first state to institutionalise peace and reconciliation work as part of its overall diplomacy. As it emerged from the mid-1980s onwards, peace and reconciliation diplomacy has had two characteristics: it has been carried out by state and society groups in tandem, and it has targeted reconciling a regime and an internal opposition to that regime. The bulk of the article presents a 1966 initiative by a group of concerned Norwegian citizens to launch a back channel for American and North Vietnamese peace talks by mobilising winners of the Nobel Peace Prize, and demonstrates that this initiative received political, administrative and economic help from the Norwegian state. This makes it a precursor of today's peace and reconciliation initiative. Given the fledgling examples of Norwegian peace and reconciliation work that we find in the margins of the League of Nations during the 1920s, knowledge about the Nobel Initiative of 1966 warrants the claim that, for the past hundred years, Norway has consistently attempted peace and reconciliation work to the extent and in the form allowed by international conditions.

Tora Sagård, of the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO), reviews Hva er Internasjonal Politikk (What Is International Relations), by Benjamin de Carvalho and Halvard Leira.

Hvordan håndterer Norge sin militæraktivisme og sitt NATO-medlemskap når landet vil presentere seg selv som en fredsnasjon? Problemstillingen ble aktuell i det norske utenriksdepartementets nylige kampanje for å få Norge valgt inn i FNs sikkerhetsråd, hvor ideen om Norge som fredsnasjon stod sentralt. I denne artikkelen bruker vi nasjonsbranding som et analytisk rammeverk for å forstå hvordan Norge bygget opp sin kampanje som fredsnasjon og håndterte det konkurrerende narrativet om sin rolle i krig. Som et sekundærfokus ser vi også på hvordan Norges to konkurrenter, Irland og Canada, fremstilte seg på disse to dimensjonene – som er av særinteresse da Irland ikke er NATO-medlem. For å utforske disse spørsmålene analyserer vi taler og tekster fra det norske diplomatiet og regjeringen vedrørende kampanjen, samt ser på kampanjematerialet til de tre landene. Gitt at de tre landenes profil er påfallende lik, fant vi at alle måtte forsøke å finne en måte å brande seg på som uttrykket ens særtrekk og høynet ens relevans i sammenligning med de to andre landene. I analysen av Norge ser vi at militæraktivisme stadig ble hvisket ut i løpet av den norske kampanjen og at andre tematikker ble brukt i brandingen – som for eksempel likestilling og bidrag til internasjonal utvikling. Dette skulle dermed skulle legitimere ideen om fredsnasjonen Norge, et land som alle andre kan stole på.
Abstract in English:Military Activism Branded as Peace Activism? Norway's Campaign for a Seat on the UN Security CouncilIn seeking to present itself as a peace nation, how has Norway sought to address its military activism and NATO membership? This tension was apparent in Norway's recent campaign for a seat on the UN Security Council, where the idea of the country as a peace nation stood central. Using nation branding as an analytical framework, we ask how Norway built and sustained this peace narrative and managed the competing narrative of its role in controversial armed conflicts. As a secondary focus, we ask how Norway's two competitors, Ireland and Canada, presented themselves on these two axes of peace and military activism. Ireland posed a particular threat as it is not a NATO member. To explore these questions, we analyse speeches and texts from Norwegian officials regarding the campaign and examine the official campaign material from all three countries. Given that the image of all three countries was generally similar, we find that each country sought to find unique ways to brand themselves as well as countering the few specific advantages of the others. In the case of Norway, we find that during the campaign the country's military activism was downplayed and other themes were foregrounded in the branding, such as gender equality and international development cooperation. This would legitimate the idea of Norway as a peace nation, a reliable partner that all states could trust.

On April 25, 2013, UN's Security Council established a 12,600-strong peacekeeping force for Mali. The United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSMA) is to take over and continue the security and stabilization task that the French-led military operation in cooperation with UN's African-led International Support Mission to Mali, AFISMA, initiated in January 2013. The aim of this report is to present a number of long- and short-term perspectives for the recently initiated peace- and state-building process in Mali by focusing on the historical, structural and political causes of the crisis in Mali. Understanding these causes and handling their derived conflict potentials provide a minimum of prerequisites for establishing long-term peace. The report is structured according to four intertwined conflict potentials: Mali's fragile state, the status and background of the Tuareg rebellion, the organized crime and the regional cooperation. .

BILATERAL RELATIONS ON THE MEND: Transforming the Mosaic of Opportunities into Policies of Stability and Reconciliation between Afghanistan & PakistanBilateral reconciliation and trust building between Afghanistan and Pakistan require determined individuals who will prioritize identification of workable solutions to regional instability.This report summarizes recommendations on how to approach such solutions. The recommendations emerged during two rounds of track-II dialogue – one in Kabul in May, and one in Islamabad in September, 2017 - between influential individuals from Afghanistan and Pakistan, organized by the Royal Danish Defence College (RDDC) and the Regional Peace Institute (RPI).In addition to discussing a host of other issues, the two rounds of the conference generated ideas and innovative suggestions on how to deal with peace negotiations between the Afghan government and the Taliban, the future of Western engagement in Afghanistan, ways to resolve the Afghan refugee crisis and increasing the volume of trade between Pakistan and Afghanistan.The constructive and innovative development of recommendations during both rounds went beyond initial expectations in terms of volume and quality. However, generating innovative policy recommendations, by itself, is insufficient without their effective implementation.This report can be viewed as a mosaic of ideas and opportunities to enter a path of reconciliation and stability. If implemented, these ideas and recommendations can lead to addressing the outstanding issues between Afghanistan & Pakistan.By presenting this mosaic of progress, this report, and the authors behind it aspire to contribute in a meaningful manner to mending the existing relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan.