On May 3, USIP, in partnership with the Alliance for Peacebuilding, kickstarted PeaceCon 2023 by bringing together senior officials, thought leaders, policymakers and practitioners from around the world to explore this year’s theme, “Beyond Fragile Ground: New Peacebuilding Architectures for Today and the Future,” as well as discuss new strategic approaches and peacebuilding frameworks to manage conflict and prevent violence.

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/peacecon-2023-beyond-fragile-ground

On April 11, USIP hosted a conversation with Andrew Monaghan on what Russian grand strategy entails, how it manifests in the political, economic, and military spheres, and what this means for the United States and the future of global conflict in the era of great power competition.

Dr. Andrew Monaghan
Global Fellow, Kennan Institute, the Wilson Center 

Mary Glantz, moderator 
Senior Advisor, Center for Russia and Europe, U.S. Institute of Peace

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/russian-grand-strategy-era-great-power-competition

On April 11, USIP hosted Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT) — chairman of the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Subcommittee on Near East, South Asia, Central Asia, and Counterterrorism and a member of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs — for a conversation exploring his views on how U.S. policy toward Tunisia should adjust to new realities on the ground.

Lise Grande
President and CEO, U.S. Institute of Peace

Senator Chris Murphy (D-CT)
U.S. Senator from Connecticut

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/looking-tunisia-all-angles

On March 30, USIP hosted a conversation with George Black and several of the leading figures profiled in his new book "The Long Reckoning: A Story of War, Peace, and Redemption in Vietnam." The discussion explored their intersecting efforts to orchestrate political reconciliation and personal redemption, demonstrating how former enemies can transform into friends and partners.

George Black
Author, "The Long Reckoning: A Story of War, Peace, and Redemption in Vietnam"

Chuck Searcy
U.S. Veteran; International Advisor, Project RENEW

Ngô Xuân Hiền
Communications and Development Manager, Project RENEW

Susan Hammond
Executive Director and Founder, War Legacies Project

Andrew Wells-Dang, moderator
Senior Expert, U.S. Institute of Peace

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/reconciliation-and-reckoning-vietnam

On March 29, USIP hosted a conversation with Montenegrin President Milo Đukanović on security and stability in the Balkans, the growing threat of Russian influence across the European continent, and the importance of NATO and the future of European security architecture.

Lise Grande, welcoming remarks
President and CEO, U.S. Institute of Peace

Milo Đukanović
President, Montenegro

Wess Mitchell, moderator
Senior Advisor, Center for Russia and Europe, U.S. Institute of Peace

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/assessing-state-european-security-presidential-perspective-balkans

On March 28, USIP and the U.S. Department of State’s Office of Global Criminal Justice and Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations hosted a discussion on how formal and transitional justice mechanisms have created or sustained momentum for democracy in states where democratic values are threatened by authoritarianism and conflict.

Lise Grande, co-moderator
President and CEO, U.S. Institute of Peace 

Colleen Crenwelge, welcoming remarks
Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Conflict and Stabilization Operations, U.S. Department of State

Beth Van Schaack, keynote remarks 
Ambassador-at-Large for Global Criminal Justice, Office of Global Criminal Justice, U.S. Department of State

Ambassador David Scheffer, co-moderator
Professor of Practice, Arizona State University (Washington)

Gina Cabarcas Maciá
Director, Justice & Criminal Policy Laboratory

Baba Galleh Jallow
Roger D. Fisher Fellow in Negotiation and Conflict Resolution, Harvard Law School

Oleksandra Matviichuk
Head of the Organization, Center for Civil Liberties; Nobel Peace Laureate

Fabricio Guariglia, closing remarks
Director, The Hague Branch Office, International Development Law Organization

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/justice-accountability-and-sustained-momentum-democracy

Despite China’s eschewal of formal alliances, the China-Pakistan military partnership has deepened significantly over the past decade, approaching a threshold alliance. The trajectory toward a military alliance is not, however, inevitable. But the prospects for China projecting military power over the Indian Ocean from Pakistan’s Western coast are growing.

USIP Senior South Asia Expert Sameer Lalwani’s new Special Report examines the Sino-Pakistani military relationship and where it’s headed. At a launch event, Jedidiah P. Royal, the principal deputy assistant secretary of defense for Indo-Pacific Security Affairs, provided opening remarks. Zack Cooper, a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute; Bonny Lin, the director of the Center for Strategic and International Studies’ China Power Project; and Asfandyar Mir, a senior expert on South Asia at USIP, discuss the report.

For more information, please visit: https://www.usip.org/publications/2023/03/threshold-alliance-china-pakistan-military-relationship

As Ukraine continues its courageous and fully justified defense against Russia’s war of aggression, Ukrainian policymakers have, understandably, prioritized Ukraine’s security in an immediate response to the 2022 full-scale invasion. On March 27, USIP hosted a discussion on the tensions between security, democracy and civil liberties, the costs and benefits of total defense/comprehensive security models, and the regulation and oversight of strong security sectors.

Ambassador William Taylor, moderator
Vice President, U.S. Institute of Peace

Jorgan Andrews
State Department Fellow, U.S. Institute of Peace

Daria Kaleniuk
Executive Director, Co-founder, Anticorruption Action Centre

Marta Kepe
Senior Defense Analyst, RAND

Oleksandra Matviichuk
Head, Center for Civil Liberties

Jonas Wikström
Admiral, Swedish Armed Forces; Swedish Defense Attaché to the United States of America

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/securing-peace-ukraine

On March 27, USIP hosted a conversation with two prominent women, peace and security champions from the Horn of Africa on the sidelines of the U.S. Summit for Democracy. The discussion looked at the role of women’s inclusion and participation in advancing democratic political transitions to achieve sustainable peace.

Lise Grande, introductory remarks
President and CEO, U.S. Institute of Peace

Michael Hammer, welcoming remarks
Special Envoy to the Horn of Africa

Filsan Abdi
Founder, Horn Peace Institute and Nabad Project

Fauziya Abdi Ali 
President, Women in International Security – Horn of Africa 

Susan Stigant, moderator
Director of Africa Programs, U.S. Institute of Peace

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/womens-leadership-peace-democracy-and-political-transitions-horn-africa

On March 24, USIP hosted a conversation featuring representatives of key pro-democracy stakeholders, including major ethnic resistance organizations and the National Unity Government, who addressed the critical role of democracy in shaping a peaceful future.

Christina Fink, moderator
Professor of Practice of International Affairs; Director, B.A. and B.S. International Affairs, George Washington University

Johanna Kao
Regional Director, Asia, International Republican Institute

Scot Marciel
Former U.S. Ambassador to Burma

Moe Zaw Oo
Deputy Foreign Minister of National Unity Government of Myanmar

For more information about this event, please visit: https://www.usip.org/events/rescuing-democracy-myanmar