Diplomacy & Defense Think Tank News

Der Chef der Monopolkommission Tomaso Duso reagiert auf die Kritik des neuen Deutschlandchefs von Telefónica in der F.A.Z.: Mehr Netzanbieter sind gut für Verbraucher und für Europas Wettbewerbsfähigkeit., Wenn Santiago Argelich Hesse, der neue Deutschlandchef von Telefónica, in der F.A.Z. für mehr Konsolidierung im europäischen Telekommunikationsmarkt wirbt und sich über einen „ruinösen Wettbewerb“ beschwert, aufgrund dessen sich Investitionen nicht ausreichend lohnen würden, dann ist das eigentlich ...

Marco Rubio's address confirms that the normative foundations of international cooperation are now openly contested not only from outside the West but from within the West itself. The question is no longer whether what is called the ‘post-1945 consensus’ will hold. The question is what replaces it, and on whose terms.

Marco Rubio's address confirms that the normative foundations of international cooperation are now openly contested not only from outside the West but from within the West itself. The question is no longer whether what is called the ‘post-1945 consensus’ will hold. The question is what replaces it, and on whose terms.

Marco Rubio's address confirms that the normative foundations of international cooperation are now openly contested not only from outside the West but from within the West itself. The question is no longer whether what is called the ‘post-1945 consensus’ will hold. The question is what replaces it, and on whose terms.

Main agenda items, approximate timing, public sessions and press opportunities.

This contribution to the Korean Development Institute's Knowledge Brief series contextualises and analyses the German Federal Ministry for Economic Co-Operation and Development's reform plan, as published in January 2026.

This contribution to the Korean Development Institute's Knowledge Brief series contextualises and analyses the German Federal Ministry for Economic Co-Operation and Development's reform plan, as published in January 2026.

This contribution to the Korean Development Institute's Knowledge Brief series contextualises and analyses the German Federal Ministry for Economic Co-Operation and Development's reform plan, as published in January 2026.

SOEP-Befragung zu sozialen Medien: Rund 90 Prozent sehen Risiken für Kinder und Jugendliche – Nutzungsverbot wird aber nur bis zwölf Jahre befürwortet, nicht bis 16 Jahre – Große Unterstützung für mehr Medienkompetenz, elterliche Begleitung und Plattformregulierung Eine große Mehrheit der ...

Access to critical raw materials (CRMs) is increasingly shaped by geopolitical dynamics, sparking a global competition for supply security. Using the gravity model of trade, we examine how OECD countries leverage Aid for Trade (AfT), Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), and Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) to influence CRM imports from developing countries. Panel data from 1995–2023 show that while intensive-margin effects of North-South PTAs appear economically negligible in the global trade equilibrium, these agreements play a strategic role in facilitating market entry and shaping supply-chain geography. Our results underscore that a coordinated mix of trade diplomacy, investment frameworks, and targeted aid is key to resilient and diversified CRM access for OECD countries.

Access to critical raw materials (CRMs) is increasingly shaped by geopolitical dynamics, sparking a global competition for supply security. Using the gravity model of trade, we examine how OECD countries leverage Aid for Trade (AfT), Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), and Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) to influence CRM imports from developing countries. Panel data from 1995–2023 show that while intensive-margin effects of North-South PTAs appear economically negligible in the global trade equilibrium, these agreements play a strategic role in facilitating market entry and shaping supply-chain geography. Our results underscore that a coordinated mix of trade diplomacy, investment frameworks, and targeted aid is key to resilient and diversified CRM access for OECD countries.

Access to critical raw materials (CRMs) is increasingly shaped by geopolitical dynamics, sparking a global competition for supply security. Using the gravity model of trade, we examine how OECD countries leverage Aid for Trade (AfT), Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs), and Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) to influence CRM imports from developing countries. Panel data from 1995–2023 show that while intensive-margin effects of North-South PTAs appear economically negligible in the global trade equilibrium, these agreements play a strategic role in facilitating market entry and shaping supply-chain geography. Our results underscore that a coordinated mix of trade diplomacy, investment frameworks, and targeted aid is key to resilient and diversified CRM access for OECD countries.

Eine Beziehung mit einem Narzissten beginnt wie ein Traum und endet oft mit Tränen. Professor Žarko Trebješanin erklärt, warum Narzissten vor Liebe fliehen und wie ihre toxischen Muster entstehen.

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IPI, together with the Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, co-hosted a public discussion on “Peace Operations and Peacebuilding: Supporting Effective UN Transitions for Sustaining Peace” on March 3rd.

Mission transitions represent an important opportunity for the UN to reconfigure its presence and strategy to support peacebuilding objectives, as articulated in Resolution 2594, adopted unanimously in 2021. Well-planned and integrated transition processes that place peacebuilding at the center require strong coordination and coherence between host governments, missions, resident coordinators, country teams, and civil society. In addition, both the UN Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) and the Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) can play valuable roles in supporting national and inclusive ownership in transition processes. To that end, the twin resolutions adopted in November 2025 on the review of the UN Peacebuilding Architecture encourage the secretary-general to consider how the PBF can further enhance its support to countries undergoing transitions from peace operations and to strengthen cooperation between the Security Council and the PBC on transition processes.

Over the past two decades, the Secretariat has developed policies and guidance aimed at promoting more effective transitions that support peacebuilding objectives. However, many transitions take place amid political and security challenges that make it difficult to implement the good practices outlined in the guidance. Against this backdrop, IPI and the Permanent Mission of Japan to the UN hosted a panel discussion on how peacebuilding gains can be sustained during and after mission transitions.

Overall, the discussion identified ways to strengthen coordination and coherence between partners on transition processes, both within and outside the UN, to bridge gaps between humanitarian, development, and peace activities. Panelists also explored opportunities to enhance the roles of the PBC and the PBF in supporting effective UN transitions.

Several speakers discussed the critical importance of ensuring that peacebuilding processes are inclusive, consultative, and nationally owned. Noting the ambiguity of the term “national ownership,” one speaker shared their view of the essential elements that constitute nationally owned peacebuilding, highlighting the centrality of a social contract that narrows the gap between legitimacy and legality, strong national capacity, a locally determined definition of a successful peace process, and financial resources, including national resource mobilization. Others echoed this point, underscoring the importance of integrating lived experiences in decision-making and recognizing that institutional reforms alone cannot sustain peace.

During the discussion, speakers also addressed the UN’s capacity to support transitions. In a context of limited resources, speakers emphasized the need to enhance planning and coordination to more effectively sustain peacebuilding gains during and after UN mission transitions. Many highlighted the role of UN agencies, funds, and programs, which often leverage greater in-country capacity to support peacebuilding efforts before, during, and after transitions. There was also broad consensus on the importance of leveraging the UN peacebuilding architecture, namely the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), Peacebuilding Fund, and Peacebuilding and Peace Support Office. Encouraging the PBC to hold more regular dialogue on transition contexts, speakers and participants stressed the need to integrate the peacebuilding architecture into UN mission mandates from their inception. While pointing to these different UN instruments, some highlighted the need to develop a common operational framework to advance work on the ground in a coherent manner.

Welcoming Remarks:
Jenna Russo, Director of Research and Head of the Brian Urquhart Center for Peace Operations and Peacebuilding, International Peace Institute

Opening Remarks:
H.E. Yamazaki Kazuyuki, Permanent Representative of Japan to the UN

Panelists:
Adedeji Ebo, Director and Deputy to the High Representative, UN Office for Disarmament Affairs
Turhan Saleh, Deputy Director, Crisis Bureau, UN Development Programme
Robert Pulver, Chief, Justice and Corrections Service Branch, UN Peacebuilding and Peace Support Office
Ai Kihara-Hunt, Professor at the Graduate Program on Human Security and Deputy Director of the Research Center for Sustainable Peace, University of Tokyo (VTC)
Cedric de Coning, Research Professor, Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (VTC)

Moderator:
Lauren McGowan, Policy Analyst, International Peace Institute

The post Peace Operations and Peacebuilding: Supporting Effective UN Transitions for Sustaining Peace appeared first on International Peace Institute.

This chapter traces the evolution of bus rapid transit (BRT) and examines its implications for urban mobility policymaking, particularly in cities in the Global South. It reviews BRT’s historical origins and global diffusion, its socio-economic and environmental impacts, as well as the distinct political dynamics that characterize the system’s implementation and operations. The chapter posits that BRT has undergone three key transformations since the 1960s-70s. The system originally emerged as a cost-effective alternative to urban rail projects, in the 2000s it then reinvented itself as a tool for sustainable urban development, and most recently it has started to reinvent itself yet again as a planning instrument for transportation formalization. Despite these changes in the policy objectives underpinning BRT initiatives, the system’s core innovation has remained unchanged: its modular flexibility. This flexibility has enabled the system’s widespread adoption and adaptation. The chapter argues that BRT offers policymakers an instructive case of how context-sensitive transit planning can help cities build more efficient, inclusive, and sustainable urban mobility systems.

This chapter traces the evolution of bus rapid transit (BRT) and examines its implications for urban mobility policymaking, particularly in cities in the Global South. It reviews BRT’s historical origins and global diffusion, its socio-economic and environmental impacts, as well as the distinct political dynamics that characterize the system’s implementation and operations. The chapter posits that BRT has undergone three key transformations since the 1960s-70s. The system originally emerged as a cost-effective alternative to urban rail projects, in the 2000s it then reinvented itself as a tool for sustainable urban development, and most recently it has started to reinvent itself yet again as a planning instrument for transportation formalization. Despite these changes in the policy objectives underpinning BRT initiatives, the system’s core innovation has remained unchanged: its modular flexibility. This flexibility has enabled the system’s widespread adoption and adaptation. The chapter argues that BRT offers policymakers an instructive case of how context-sensitive transit planning can help cities build more efficient, inclusive, and sustainable urban mobility systems.

This chapter traces the evolution of bus rapid transit (BRT) and examines its implications for urban mobility policymaking, particularly in cities in the Global South. It reviews BRT’s historical origins and global diffusion, its socio-economic and environmental impacts, as well as the distinct political dynamics that characterize the system’s implementation and operations. The chapter posits that BRT has undergone three key transformations since the 1960s-70s. The system originally emerged as a cost-effective alternative to urban rail projects, in the 2000s it then reinvented itself as a tool for sustainable urban development, and most recently it has started to reinvent itself yet again as a planning instrument for transportation formalization. Despite these changes in the policy objectives underpinning BRT initiatives, the system’s core innovation has remained unchanged: its modular flexibility. This flexibility has enabled the system’s widespread adoption and adaptation. The chapter argues that BRT offers policymakers an instructive case of how context-sensitive transit planning can help cities build more efficient, inclusive, and sustainable urban mobility systems.