Day: July 27, 2012
The proof is in the pudding
Belgrade finally has a new government, formed more than two and a half months after the May 6 election. It is an unabashedly nationalist government, with Interior Minister Ivica Dačić at the helm. The governing coalition will include his “socialists,” President Nikolic’s “progressives” as well as Mlađan Dinkić’s United Regions of Serbia.
Initial signals are that this will be a “Serbia first” government that aims for economic revival above all else. Dačić, who will hold on to the Interior Ministry, told parliament:
The new government’s priority is the economic recovery of the country. All other key goals of this government, such as Serbia’s European future, the solving of the Kosovo issue, regional cooperation, combating crime and corruption, heath care, education, and others, will depend on whether or not we will be able to secure our country’s economic survival.
This is strikingly sensible and responsive to the views of Serbia’s voters. Dinkić will play the key role as economy and finance minister. Suzana Grubješić, whom I guess I know as Suzana Mrgic, will be in charge of EU integration and a deputy prime minister.
Kosovo has been demoted from ministerial rank to a mere office. The new government is pledging to implement agreements already reached with Pristina, which is a good thing and if carried out a big change. Aleksandar Vučić is a deputy prime minister in charge of defense, security, combat against corruption and crime, and defense minister. This will make him, in addition to the prime minister, an important player in dealing with the thorny issues arising in northern Kosovo, where Serbian security structures, passionate rejection of Pristina’s authority and illegal trafficking of many different sorts make a combustible mix.
The new Foreign Minister, Ivan Mrkić, is a professional foreign service officer (formerly state secretary) who served the Milosevic regime in the 1990s as ambassador to Cyprus. Whatever his role in serving Milosevic’s requirements, this should give him a very good idea of why partition of Kosovo is a really bad idea.
So what do I think about all this? I think it is about as good as could be expected: a newish government that reflects the election results, which defeated a somewhat less nationalist and more liberal government that also had good economic intentions but found it difficult to deliver.
The proof is in the pudding, which the American way of saying that we have to wait to see the results. Serbs will be most interested in the economic results. Internationals like me will be interested in what all this means for peace and stability in the Balkans. A quick move to establish the integrated boundary/border management foreseen in one of the agreements with Pristina would be a good step in the right direction. If they don’t like that one, there are several other agreements whose implementation awaits a willing Belgrade government.
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The amateur tour can get serious
A day after a Mitt Romney adviser told the Daily Telegraph that he would pay special attention to the special relationship with his Anglo-Saxon confrères (“We are part of an Anglo-Saxon heritage, and he feels that the special relationship is special”), the candidate himself blew up that relationship with remarks about London’s lack of preparedness for the Olympics and popular lack of enthusiasm for the games. Things reportedly went better at a fundraiser attended mainly by American expat financiers, who may actually be more Mitt’s type than (Conservative) Prime Minister David Cameron. Or mayor of London Boris Johnson:
Even for an Obamista like me, it is too much to hope that Romney’s awkward performance will be repeated in Poland and Israel, where Mitt is headed next. But there are some ripe possibilities: in Jerusalem, there is the touchy issue of where Christ will reappear on earth. I’m no expert on Mormon theology, but Missouri seems to play a role that makes things awkward for Romney and may surprise many Christians (as well as those Jews still waiting for the Messiah). I won’t even try to guess what gaffes are possible in Warsaw. It is a city so full of both human horror and musical glory that there are lots of possibilities. I hope Romney knows he is supposed to like Chopin.
I’m all in favor of the growing tradition of American presidential candidates going abroad. Both Mitt Romney and Barack Obama have lived in foreign countries (principally France and Indonesia, respectively), which is refreshing for those of us who have lived a good part of our lives abroad (mine in Geneva, Rome, Brasilia and the Balkans). Foreigners don’t vote, but Americans should get some idea of how a candidate will project in other countries.
Then there is the Americans abroad constituency, which is substantial in all three countries Romney is stopping in. More than six million Americans are thought to live abroad. This is a serious number, more than 2% of the American citizenry, a number that could possibly determine the election outcome.
Romney will be focusing on Israel’s many Americans, who provide a goodly number of the settlers in the West Bank. It will not be hard for him to fish for votes among them. All he needs to do is make noises of stronger-than-Obama support for Israel’s security and forget to mention the two-state solution, blaming the failure of negotiations on the Palestinians. This will align him with the settlers who see themselves as the solution, not the problem.
That is a snare and a delusion. Here is where an amateur tour of the world gets serious and dangerous. We can all laugh at a candidate’s advisor who thinks it is important that Romney is more Anglo-Saxon than Barack Obama, who himself has lots of “Anglo-Saxon” genes in him (certainly more than I do!). We can enjoy the gaffe about the Olympics. I’ll even giggle if Romney says Chopin is boring. But if he in effect abandons the two-state solution and lines up with Sheldon Adelson’s settler friends, that will put America at serious risk of electing a president committed to perpetual war with the Palestinians and the Arab world.
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First rung on the ladder
The incomparable Bill Durch at Stimson is looking for unpaid interns. I know that’s not what you want or deserve, but these days that’s how almost everyone is starting out.
Those interested should send a cover note indicating any particular area of interest (peace operations, rule of law, and/or civilians in conflict), together with a CV and short writing sample, jointly to Michelle Ker (mker@stimson.org) and Aditi Gorur (agorur@stimson.org).
Here’s the announcement:
Future of Peace Operations Internship
The Future of Peace Operations (FOPO) program at Stimson is offering unpaid internships for fall semester 2012. Stimson is a nonprofit, nonpartisan institution devoted to enhancing international peace and security. FOPO addresses challenging analytical questions on peace operations, considers their relationship to current policy issues, and tries to build a broader dialogue on what peace operations can and should do.
A FOPO internship is an excellent opportunity for individuals seeking to build upon prior experience relevant to peace operations and conflict mitigation as well as for those with little experience but who can articulate a strong interest in the field. Interns are a vital part of FOPO, working closely with the program’s four member staff. They also engage in the life of Stimson overall, interacting with staff from other Stimson programs and participating in the Center’s events. An internship with FOPO advances participants’ knowledge and skill base and strengthens their understanding of peace operations, conflict resolution, and broader foreign policy issues.
FOPO interns should be prepared to assume administrative and organizing duties as well as research, writing, and editing.
Specific responsibilities can include:
- Providing research support to program staff.
- Creating fact sheets and assisting in the drafting of various documents.
- Proofreading, editing, and assisting in the distribution of FOPO publications.
- Representing FOPO at events around DC and writing meeting summaries.
- Helping to maintain the FOPO project website.
FOPO interns will assist FOPO with its work on:
- Developing a computational model for peacekeeping and peacebuilding
- Engaging community perspectives on security and protection actors
- Measures of effectiveness for peace operations.
- Building the rule of law in post-conflict states.
- Protecting civilians from mass atrocities.
- Tracking US policy toward the UN (particularly US contributions to peace operations and related activities).
Requirements:
- Demonstrated interest in conflict resolution/prevention, international affairs, foreign policy, defense/security policy, humanitarian issues, and/or human rights.
- Research abilities and the ability to communicate clearly and effectively both in writing and speaking.
- The ability to follow multi-step directions and take initiative in doing complex research.
- Attention to research methodology and ability to organize materials logically.
- Attention to detail and commitment to high-quality work.
- Flexibility to work effectively both as part of a team and independently.
- Initiative, maturity, and professionalism.
- Computer skills relevant to an office setting.
Preferred:
- Familiarity with peace operations and their activities.
- Previous research and work experience.
- Familiarity with Microsoft Excel, Access, computer programming, and/or web design.
- Proficiency in French, with the ability to quickly and accurately conduct French-language research.
- International experience.
We welcome applications from undergraduate, graduate, and professional candidates.
Applicants must be able to commit to a minimum of 20 hours per week. Preference is often given to those available 30+ hours per week.
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