Day: July 1, 2012
Just two peace picks this week
This is the deadest week I remember in DC, but if you happen to be stuck in town here are two events worth considering:
1. The State of Afghanistan, Brookings, 9:30-11 am July 3
As the U.S. and NATO troop surges in Afghanistan begin to wind down, and transition of control to the Afghan government and people moves forward, continued long-term support for the country remains crucial to the mission’s prospects. While much of the last year has witnessed decreased violence, many challenges clearly still remain. Many of them center on governance and development. A major donors’ conference will be held July 8 in Japan to discuss Afghanistan’s development and governance, and consider future international financial support.
On July 3, Foreign Policy at Brookings will host a discussion on the current situation in Afghanistan, featuring keynote remarks from Alex Thier, assistant to the administrator and director of the Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs at the U.S. Agency for International Development. Following his remarks, Thier will be joined by former U.S. ambassador to Afghanistan Ronald Neumann, author of The Other War (Potomac Books, 2009), and Brookings Senior Fellow Michael O’Hanlon, co-author of Bending History (Brookings, 2012) and the report “Towards a Political Strategy in Afghanistan,” for a discussion.
After the program, participants will take audience questions.
Falk Auditorium
1775 Massachusetts Avenue, N.W.
For More Information
Brookings Office of Communications
events@brookings.edu
202.797.6105
Event Agenda
- Introductory Remarks
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- Keynote Address
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Alex Thier
Assistant to the Administrator and Director of the Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs
U.S. Agency for International Development
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- Panelists
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Ronald Neumann
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Alex Thier
Assistant to the Administrator and Director of the Office of Afghanistan and Pakistan Affairs
U.S. Agency for International Development
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2. New Story Leadership for the Middle East, SAIS 9 am-2 pm July 6
| When: | Back to Calendar July 6, 2012 @ 9:00 am – 2:00 pm | |
|---|---|---|
| Where: | The School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) Johns Hopkins University 1740 Massachusetts Ave NW Washington,DC 20036 USA |
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| Cost: | Free | |
| Contact: | Paul Costello 240-476-1123 paul@newstoryleadership.org |
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| Categories: | Conferences | |
Add to Google Calendar 
The younger generations of Egypt, Tunisia and other countries in North Africa and the Middle East have decisively spoken up for change, demanding new leadership, greater freedom and the right to choose their own futures. Now the younger generation of the most conflicted zone in the region also wants to speak for change, to engage you in the new conversation by sharing their stories and their hopes for peace.
NSL, partnering with SAIS, is proud to announce a special half-day conference featuring inspiring presentations from young leaders from Israel and Palestine who are living and working together for the summer here in Washington. They will share their insights about the on-going Israeli-Palestinian conflict and field questions from the audience in effort to unearth what this emerging generation of young adults from the Middle East is thinking about their future, and the future of their region.
If you are tired of the old story of the Middle East, of failed peace attempts and stalled negotiations, come and hear fresh voices, voices that insist on being heard because it is their future that is being shaped by conversations conducted in Washington. They are demanding a say for themselves and on-behalf of their generation.
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Thankful even if I don’t agree
The Belgrade Center for Peace and Democracy Development is today publishing a paper entitled Albanian–Serbian Dialogue: Basis for a New Beginning.
I like many things about this paper, including the quite proper attempt to treat the three distinct concepts of independence, statehood and sovereignty separately.
But I won’t hide my disappointment that it has chosen to opt for Serbia to recognize Kosovo’s independence rather than its sovereignty. I’d have far preferred the other way around, which seems to me consistent with Belgrade’s often stated position that it would not recognize Kosovo’s unilateral declaration of independence. There is in fact no need for Belgrade to recognize a political declaration of intent, even one as thoroughly coordinated with some parts of the international community as Kosovo’s declaration.
That Kosovo is a state I take as a given. You only need visit its institutions to realize that, but it is also true that it was a state, albeit a provincial one, even in Socialist Yugoslavia. Vojislav Kostunica said this soon after the fall of Milosevic, though he has said the opposite many times since. The vital question is whether it is sovereign. This it has to be in order to qualify for EU membership, including the requirement for good neighborly relations. There is just no getting around this.
I really don’t think much more can be done without settling the status issue, which is fundamentally an issue about sovereignty. As Kosovo moves towards establishing an army of its own in 2013 (whatever it is formally called), it is important that Serbia acknowledge that the Kosovo institutions have a monopoly on the legitimate use of violence on the entire territory of Kosovo. Anything less risks a serious clash, one Serbia would win on the battlefield, but at the high cost of setting back its efforts for EU membership. In other words, I don’t think the effort to reduce the sovereignty issue to a formality will work. It is independence that is relative and formal, not sovereignty.
I hasten to add that I like the subtly stated “status for status” proposition as well as the offices for cooperation, and many other aspects of this paper, which shows more thought than I’ve seen coming out of Serbia on the issues in a long time. For that I am thankful!
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