The need for a cultural change in Mali

I gave a public lecture yesterday in Brussels about the situation in Mali. One of the key issues under discussion was the reconciliation among Malians. A very difficult issue, I knew, as the events of 2012 and the early part of 2013 in the Northern Regions had a major negative impact on trust. Each ethnic group withdrew inside its own identity and became very suspicious of every other ethnicity.

It is an issue that is not moving fast enough, at a time when many other parts of the transition process are gaining momentum. And yesterday, during the discussions that followed my presentation, I came to the conclusion that many Malians are not really ready to reconcile. They tend to look at the Tuareg and other nomadic people from the North of Mali with a certain degree of contempt. And the nomads return the favour and see the black Malians as people that are not really interested in sharing power.

I got the impression that the leadership needs to be talked to into a cultural revolution. They have to change their views. The external partners should help them to do so. This is a priority task. 

Fuels for development In Africa

My new research paper of energy and sustainable development in Africa is available at :

http://www.fuelfreedom.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/Fuel-Africa_FINAL.pdf

This study, done in collaboration with Dr Kate McGuinness, was discussed in late September in New York at a breakfast organised as part of the annual meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative.

The radical right is on the offensive

Globalisation and international migrations tend to generate the impression, in the EU public opinion, that that the world out there has become a threat to our standard of living, our jobs, culture and values.  Protectionist ideas are easily gaining ground and can become the extremist banner behind which people could rally. In many ways, both ends of extremist political spectrum can make use of these fears. But it is above all an easy ride for the radical right. They are the ones that can gain more from the exploitation of such feelings. And that explains in no small measure the advances of the right wingers in many parts of the European Continent. And we can expect more of it as well.

NUPI

I spent a good deal of the day at NUPI, the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs. And as usual, I was very impressed by their applied research in the area of peace and security. They are certainly a reference institution when it comes to assessing peacekeeping operations as well as proposing new approaches to field deployments. They have done pioneer work on the issue of civilian capacities and are pretty substantively engaged in looking at the Police dimension in peacekeeping. Police has been the poor link in the peacekeeping field missions. 

Russia and the West have to cooperate.

The political and security relations between the West and Russia are currently in deep water.  There is renewed suspicion on both sides. It is critical to understand the reasons and address the problem. Europe cannot entertain a new level of tension with her neighbour to the East. It is not in our interest. Can´t we understand this?

On the other side, Russia should get the point that a confrontation with the West would be to her disadvantage. Technologically the Russians are behind. They would be a tough target but in the end they would be vulnerable.  Can´t they understand this point?

Forget the reform of the UN Security Council

The reform of the UN Security Council has been on the table for the last 20 years. And there is been no progress. The Permanent 5 (P5) are the ones blocking the change that should take place. They have the veto power and believe that their standing in the world is above every other nation. How can that be? How can France or the UK believe they yield more power than India or Brazil? 

It is now quite obvious that the reform will not happen in the foreseeable future. As an alternative, it is important to reinforce the authority and the legitimacy of other international groupings of nations, such as the African Union, the EU or the Arab League. Their capabilities to deal with matters of peace and security, as well as with economic coordination and development should be seriously enhanced. 

Crisis response: Moving beyond strategic games, ineffectiveness and indifference

 It is time to discuss the new trends in the international community´s response to major peace and security challenges. As globalisation advances, violent conflicts in a far flung corner of the world can easily gain a wider dimension and have a regional or even a larger impact. They also tend to have dramatic humanitarian consequences, hand in hand with extremely serious human rights violations.

Is the international machinery ready to address such threats in an urgent and comprehensive manner? What to do if the UN Security Council is unwilling to agree on an appropriate response? How to address the issues of urgency and comprehensiveness? Is development assistance, as practiced during the last decades, geared towards strengthening human security and reinforcing peace building? How is public opinion in the developed world being influenced when it comes to reacting to crisis in distant lands? 

Norway and the UN

Today´s decision on this year´s Nobel Peace Prize shows again how attached the Norwegians are to the UN and the organizations that make the UN System.

I have worked with many developed states. And I have always noticed how much the Norwegians appreciated the work of the UN.  The leaders and the public opinion in Norway believe in the UN and would feel safer in a world where the very big countries would accept a larger role for the international organizations.

You might believe there is some naiveté in the Norwegian attitude towards the UN. It might be somehow true. But dreams are important. And sometimes they become real. 

The absence of an immigration policy

One could again notice in the recent days that the EU has no common policy on immigration. The states still look at the issue as a national matter and not as a common challenge. The resources made available to FRONTEX, the agency charged with the EU border policing are clearly insufficient. Moreover, the leaders do not take a comprehensive approach and deal with the issue with one tool only - border control - when it is clear that other measures are necessary. Without a combination of approaches, combining policing with diplomacy, development assistance, strategic communications, and an integration policy, we will continue to see the misery boats crossing the Mediterranean in search of the next tragedy. 

New threats call for new responses

The US Navy Seals operations over the week end in Libya and Somalia, to capture well known terrorist leaders raise a number of questions, in terms of international law. But above all, they beg the question about how current and adjusted to today's world is the fight against international terrorism. This is a debate that has yet to take place: how to respond to multinational terrorist groups.

They represent a new threat to international peace and security. They cannot be fought with conventional means. And they cannot be convinced that they will be safe in weak states or in chaotic societies. They have to understand that global terrorism calls for a global response.

And that was certainly the key message the US has sent this week end across many parts of Africa and elsewhere. The US might have gone beyond the accepted norms. But we need to consider that the old ways of addressing new challenges need to be thought through. With a new approach to national sovereignty and the legitimate use of force.