HU Credits: 2

Degree/Cycle: 2nd degree (Master)

Responsible Department: Conflict Management & Resolution

Semester: 1st Semester

Teaching Languages: Hebrew

Campus: Mt. Scopus

Course/Module Coordinator: Lior Lehrs

Coordinator Email: lior.lehrs@mail.huji.ac.il

Coordinator Office Hours:

Teaching Staff:
Dr. Lior Lehrs

Course/Module description:
The course examines international and diplomatic issues involved in conflict resolution processes. It incorporates an introduction to key concepts and theories in the field alongside the analysis of case studies from various conflict areas. The course explores different types of peace agreements and negotiation channels, and discusses international involvement in conflicts, the influence of leaders and public opinion in peace processes, and ways to include divers actors in peacemaking. The course analyzes various diplomatic tools that can be used in conditions of conflict, such as back channels, summit conferences, and confidence-building measures, and addresses issues arising in peace talks, such as different models for resolving ethnic conflicts and questions of transitional justice. It draws on real-world case studies of conflicts and peace processes from around the world as an empirical ground to examine the theoretical models in the literature and their translation into policy.

Course/Module aims:

Learning outcomes - On successful completion of this module, students should be able to:
By the completion of this course, students will be able to:
1.To be familiar with key concepts and theoretical approaches related to the diplomatic and international aspects of conflict resolution and peace processes, and understand central questions and dilemmas in the field.
2.Identify the potential role of diplomatic tools and various actors in promoting peace, and develop the ability to analyze processes of negotiation, mediation, and peace-building.
3.To be familiar with empirical examples from different conflicts around the world, building ability to analyze the gaps and tensions between theory and practice and the complexities involved in decision-making processes under conditions of conflicts and peace processes.

Attendance requirements(%):

Teaching arrangement and method of instruction:

Course/Module Content:
Introduction and key terms
Diplomatic Strategies in Conflict Resolution
Backchannel Diplomacy and Summit Conferences
Gestures of Reconciliation and Confidence-Building Measures and Disaster Diplomacy
Leadership and Public Opinion in Peace Processes
International Involvement in Conflicts
Humanitarian intervention and peacekeeping forces
International Mediation
Inclusion of Actors in Peace Processes
Women's Representation in Peace Processes
Civil Society Engagement in Peacemaking
Religious Leaders in Peacebuilding
Barriers to conflict resolution
Conflict Resolution Models for Ethnic Conflicts
Peace and Justice
Divided Cities and "Urban Peace"

Required Reading:
Introduction and Key Concepts
* Bercovitch, Jacob, Victor Kremenyuk, and I. William Zartman. "Introduction: The nature of conflict and conflict resolution." The Sage handbook of conflict resolution. 2009.
Rouhana, Nadim N., and Daniel Bar-Tal. "Psychological dynamics of intractable ethnonational conflicts: The Israeli–Palestinian case." American psychologist 53.7 (1998).
Caplan, Richard. Measuring peace: principles, practices, and politics (Oxford University Press, USA, 2019), ch 1.
Bell, Christine, and Laura Wise. "Peace processes and their agreements." In: Mac Ginty, Roger, and Anthony Wanis-St John, eds. Contemporary Peacemaking: Peace Processes, Peacebuilding and Conflict (Springer Nature, 2022)‏, pp. 381-406.‏
Snodderly, Dan. Peace terms Glossary of Terms for Conflict Management and Peacebuilding (Washington DC: USIP Press, 2011).‏

Diplomatic Strategies in Conflict Resolution
Backchannel diplomacy
* Pruitt, Dean. "Back-channel Communication in the Settlement of Conflict." International Negotiation 13.1 (2008): 37-54.‏

Jones, Peter. "Ethical dilemmas of back-channel diplomacy: Necessary secrecy or a secret foreign policy?." The Hague Journal of Diplomacy 13.4 (2018): 483-501.‏

Wanis‐St. John, Anthony. "Back‐channel negotiation: International bargaining in the shadows." Negotiation Journal 22.2 (2006): 119-144.
Ó Dochartaigh, Niall. "Negotiating Peace in the Shadows." In: Mac Ginty, Roger, and Anthony Wanis-St John, eds. Contemporary Peacemaking: Peace Processes, Peacebuilding and Conflict (Springer Nature, 2022)‏, pp. 261-285.‏

Summit conferences
* Weilemann, Peter R. "The summit meeting: The role and agenda of diplomacy at its highest level." nira Review 7.2 (2000): 16-20.‏

Holmes, Marcus, and Keren Yarhi-Milo. "The psychological logic of peace summits: How empathy shapes outcomes of diplomatic negotiations." International Studies Quarterly 61.1 (2017): 107-122.‏

Pinfari, Marco. Peace negotiations and time: deadline diplomacy in territorial disputes. Routledge, 2012, ch. 2.


Gestures of Conciliation, Confidence building measures, and disaster diplomacy

* Mason, Simon JA, and Matthias Siegfried. "Confidence building measures (CBMs) in peace processes." Managing Peace Processes: Process related questions. A handbook for AU practitioners 1 (2013): 57-77.‏
Mitchell, Christopher. Gestures of Conciliation (London: Macmillan, 2000), ch 5.
Larson, Deborah Welch. "Trust and missed opportunities in international relations." Political Psychology 18.3 (1997): 701-734.‏

Gaillard, Jean-Christophe, Elsa Clavé, and Ilan Kelman. "Wave of peace? Tsunami disaster diplomacy in Aceh, Indonesia." Geoforum 39.1 (2008): 511-526.‏
Kelman, Ilan. "Acting on disaster diplomacy." Journal of International Affairs (2006): 215-240.
Ker‐Lindsay, James. "Greek‐Turkish rapprochement: The impact of disaster diplomacy'?." Cambridge Review of International Affairs 14.1 (2000): 215-232.

Public Opinion and Leadership in Peace Processes
* Putnam, Robert D., “Diplomacy and domestic politics: the logic of two-level game,” International Organization, Vol. 42, 3 (Summer 1988), pp. 427-260.
Yaacov Bar-Siman-Tov, Israel and the Peace Process 1977-1982: In Search of Legitimacy for Peace (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1994), Ch. 1.
Levy, Jack S. “Learning and Foreign Policy: Sweeping a Conceptual Minefield,” International Organization, vol. 48 (1994), pp. 279-312.
Ryckman, Kirssa Cline, and Jessica Maves Braithwaite. "Changing horses in midstream: Leadership changes and the civil war peace process." Conflict Management and Peace Science 37.1 (2020): 83-105.‏
Lieberfeld, Daniel. "Lincoln, Mandela, and qualities of reconciliation-oriented leadership." Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology 15.1 (2009): 27-47.‏

Amaral, Joana. "Peacemaking Referendums: Advantages and Challenges for Peace Processes." In: Mac Ginty, Roger, and Anthony Wanis-St John, eds. Contemporary Peacemaking: Peace Processes, Peacebuilding and Conflict (Springer Nature, 2022)‏, pp. 141-157.‏

International Involvement in Conflicts
* Matanock, Aila M., and Adam Lichtenheld. "How Does International Intervention Work to Secure Peace Settlements After Civil Conflicts?." British Journal of Political Science 52.4 (2022): 1810-1830.‏
Howorth, Jolyon. "Humanitarian intervention and post-conflict reconstruction in the post-Cold War era: a provisional balance-sheet." Cambridge Review of International Affairs 26.2 (2013): 288-309.‏
Cunningham, David E. "Preventing civil war: How the potential for international intervention can deter conflict onset." World politics 68.2 (2016): 307-340.‏
Fortna, Virginia Page. "Does peacekeeping keep peace? International intervention and the duration of peace after civil war." International studies quarterly 48.2 (2004): 269-292.‏
Gent, Stephen E. "Going in when it counts: Military intervention and the outcome of civil conflicts." International Studies Quarterly 52.4 (2008): 713-735.‏

International Mediation
* Bercovitch, Jacob. "Mediation and Conflict Resolution" in The SAGE Handbook of Conflict Resolution, edited by Jacob Bercovitch, Victor Kremenyuk, and I. William Zartman (Los Angeles: SAGE, 2009), pp. 340-357.
Kleiboer, Marieke. "Understanding success and failure of international mediation." Journal of Conflict resolution 40.2 (1996): 360-389.‏
Zartman, I. William, and Saadia Touval. "International mediation: Conflict resolution and power politics." Journal of social issues 41.2 (1985): 27-45.‏
Beber, Bernd. "International mediation, selection effects, and the question of bias." Conflict Management and Peace Science 29.4 (2012): 397-424.‏

Curran, Daniel, James K. Sebenius, and Michael Watkins. "Two Paths to Peace: Contrasting George Mitchell in Northern Ireland with Richard Holbrooke in Bosnia–Herzegovina." Negotiation Journal 20.4 (2004): 513-537.‏

Hellmüller, Sara, Jamie Pring, and Oliver P Richmond. "How norms matter in mediation: An introduction." Swiss Political Science Review 26.4 (2020): 345-363.‏

Inclusion of Actors in Peacemaking
Inclusion of Women in Peace Processes
* Krause, Jana, and Louise Olsson. "Women’s Participation in Peace Processes." In: Mac Ginty, Roger, and Anthony Wanis-St John, eds. Contemporary Peacemaking: Peace Processes, Peacebuilding and Conflict (Springer Nature, 2022)‏, 103-119.‏
True, Jacqui, and Yolanda Riveros-Morales. "Towards inclusive peace: Analysing gender-sensitive peace agreements 2000–2016." International Political Science Review 40.1 (2019): 23-40.‏

Bell, Christine, and Catherine O'rourke. "Peace agreements or pieces of paper? The impact of UNSC Resolution 1325 on peace processes and their agreements." International & Comparative Law Quarterly 59.4 (2010): 941-980.‏
Paffenholz, Thania. "Women in peace negotiations." Gendering diplomacy and international negotiation (2018): 169-191.


Inclusion of Civil Society Actors
‏
* Kew, Darren, and Anthony Wanis-St John. "Civil society and peace negotiations: Confronting exclusion." International Negotiation 13.1 (2008): 11-36.‏

Hirblinger, Andreas T., and Dana M. Landau. "Daring to differ? Strategies of inclusion in peacemaking." Security Dialogue 51.4 (2020): 305-322.‏

Nilsson, Desirée. "Anchoring the peace: Civil society actors in peace accords and durable peace." International Interactions 38.2 (2012): 243-266.‏


Religious Actors

Alger, Chadwick F. "Religion as a peace tool." The Global Review of Ethnopolitics 1.4 (2002): 94-109.‏

Abu-Nimer, Mohammed. "Religion and Peacebuilding 1." Routledge handbook of peacebuilding. Routledge, 2013. 69-80.‏

Barriers to Conflict Resolution and How to Address Them
* Mnookin, Robert H. and Lee Ross, “Introduction”, in Kenneth Arrow, et.al, Barriers to Conflict Resolution (New York: Norton, 1995), pp. 2-24.
Ross, Lee, and Constance Stillinger. "Barriers to conflict resolution." Negot. J. 7 (1991): 389.‏
Hassner, Ron E. "“To halve and to hold”: Conflicts over sacred space and the problem of indivisibility." Security Studies 12.4 (2003): 1-33.‏
Stedman, Stephen John. "Spoiler problems in peace processes." International security 22.2 (1997): 5-53.‏
Zartman, I. William. "Ripeness: The hurting stalemate and beyond." International conflict resolution after the Cold War 2 (2000): 225-250.‏

Models for Solutions in Ethnic Conflicts
* Schneckener, Ulrich. "Making power-sharing work: lessons from successes and failures in ethnic conflict regulation." Journal of Peace Research 39.2 (2002): 203-228.‏
Bayo Adekanye, J. "Power-sharing in multi-ethnic political systems." Security Dialogue 29:1 (1998): 25-36.
Kaufmann, Chaim. "Possible and impossible solutions to ethnic civil wars." International security 20.4 (1996): 136-175.
Vandeginste, Stef. "Governing ethnicity after genocide: ethnic amnesia in Rwanda versus ethnic power-sharing in Burundi." Journal of Eastern African Studies 8.2 (2014): 263-277.‏

Peace and Justice
* Teitel, Ruti, "The Law and Politics of Contemporary Transitional Justice," Cornell International Law Journal, 38:3 (2005): 837-862.
Schorr-Liebfeld, Tomer, and Avraham Sela. "The Key Role of Political Prisoners in Transcending Protracted Conflicts." International Studies Quarterly 67.4 (2023).

Cohen, Raymond. "Apology and reconciliation in international relations." in Yaacov Bar-Siman-Tov, From Conflict Resolution to Reconciliation (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004), Ch. 8.
Lambourne, Wendy. "Transitional justice and peacebuilding after mass violence." International journal of transitional justice 3.1 (2009): 28-48.
Hayner, Priscilla. The peacemaker’s paradox: Pursuing justice in the shadow of conflict. Routledge, 2018, ch. 3.

Divided Cities and "Urban Peace"
* Gusic, Ivan. "Peace between peace (s)? Urban peace and the coexistence of antagonists in city spaces." Journal of Intervention and Statebuilding 16.5 (2022): 619-640.‏

Elfversson, Emma, Ivan Gusic, and Jonathan Rokem. "Peace in cities, peace through cities? Theorising and exploring geographies of peace in violently contested cities." Peacebuilding (2023): 1-17.‏

Shtern, Marik, Sertac Sonan, and Ourania Papasozomenou. "City profile: Nicosia." Cities 130 (2022): 103866.‏ ‏

Mac Ginty, Roger, and Oliver P. Richmond. "The local turn in peace building: a critical agenda for peace." Third world quarterly 34.5 (2013): 763-783.‏

Björkdahl, Annika. "Urban peacebuilding." Peacebuilding 1.2 (2013): 207-221.‏

Additional Reading Material:

Grading Scheme :
Essay / Project / Final Assignment / Referat 60 %
Presentation / Poster Presentation / Lecture/ Seminar / Pro-seminar / Research proposal 10 %
Active Participation / Team Assignment 10 %
Submission assignments during the semester: Exercises / Essays / Audits / Reports / Forum / Simulation / others 20 %

Additional information: