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SoSe 21: Regional Organizations and Confl. Management in t. Global South

Jamie Pring

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Since the 1990s, regional intergovernmental organizations have emerged at the forefront of international conflict management. These regional organizations have established their own peacebuilding units and mandate peacemaking and peacekeeping missions. Second to the United Nations (UN), most of the activities are initiated by regional organizations in the Global South, for example, the African Union (AU) in Africa and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Southeast Asia. This seminar examines international organizations’ activities in conflict management to analyze why and how they form, develop, and engage in peace and security issues. It first discusses the main International Relations theories and their take on international organizations. Second, the seminar applies the theories in understanding the institutions and overall performance of these organizations in maintaining peace and security. Third, the seminar fosters the examination of the different conflict management tools, such as peacemaking, peacekeeping, peacebuilding, among others, and specific cases where these international organizations employ them. Lastly, the seminar provides an overview of international organizations’ interaction with the UN in addressing armed conflicts. While building on mainstream theories in IR, the seminar’s focus on organizations in the Global South sheds light on dimensions of international community-building less studied in the dominant Europe-based explanations. Learning objectives At the end of the course, students are knowledgeable of the main International Relations theories regarding the formation and activities of regional organizations in conflict management. They are also familiar with international conflict management tools and related basic issues in peace and conflict studies. The overall aim is that students are able to apply these in understanding and analyzing the conflict management institutional design and activities of regional organizations in the Global South. close