Lecture by Paul Dziatkowiec (Geneva Centre for Security Policy)

On November 19, Paul Dziatkowiec (Geneva Centre for Security Policy) gave a lecture about contemporary challenges in the field of international mediation. He focused on the importance of Track II talks, designed to facilitate discussions with “hard to reach” actors and concerning “hard to address” topics. As Mr. Dziatkowiec explained, such talks can build trust in an air of confidentiality and help to create interpersonal connections in order to build momentum for conflict resolution, especially when the formal, intergovernmental diplomatic (Track I) negotiations get stuck. He emphasized that even though there are many challenges to mediation in the contemporary international environment — including actors actively undermining the rules-based order that has been in place for the past 80 years — mediation and persistent work on conflict resolution remain crucial to keep International peace.

(Summary by Gitta Kelemen, IR Master’s student)

IR TALKS is a series of guest and roundtable talks organised by the Department of International Relations at Corvinus University to make sense of the world we live in at a time of turbulent international politics.