Co-sponsored by the Jean Monnet European Union Center of Excellence and Human Rights Program in the Law School
The practice of peacemaking is increasingly fragmented. The conflict-ranging peace processes that rely on UN leadership, a such as those in the form of international peace conferences, are few and far between, and in their place we see more attempts to negotiate peace deals at the local level, as well as a multiplication of peace initiatives and peace processes in each conflict setting. This fragmentation poses many challenges, mostly related to the rise of illiberal actors whose mediation in armed conflict is neglecting normative content of peace agreements, leading to fewer instances of agreements that offer agendas for change that focus on issues such as human rights, rule of law, and international humanitarian law. However, this situation may also offer some space for other global actors, such as the European Union, to use their clout to keep normative concerns on the agenda. Considering the data from the PA-X Peace Agreement Database and Dataset, and its new dataset of agreement signatories, this paper and related talk assess these trends in general, and examine the past participation of the EU in formal peace processes, as well as the potential for EU’s future impact.
Dr. Sanja Badanjak is a Chancellor’s Fellow in Global Challenges at the University of Edinburgh’s School of Law, and Data Director for the Peace and Conflict Resolution Evidence Platform (PeaceRep), where she has been working as data manager for PA-X Peace Agreements Database and Dataset. Her research interests include the applications of quantitative and text-as-data methods in the study of political institutions, elections, and peace processes. Most recently, she has been working on data collection and analysis concerning third party involvement in peace processes. She completed her PhD in political science at the University of Wisconsin – Madison, and holds an MA degree in political science from the Central European University, and a BA in political science from the University of Zagreb.
