Richard Gowan
@richardgowan1.bsky.social
Program Director, Global Issues and Institutions, at Crisis Group.
"An expert on the UN, Richard Gowan of the International Crisis Group, describes a distinction that insiders make in New York, between a secretary-general who knows how to navigate great-power politics, and one who takes P5 orders." www.economist.com/internationa...
Al Capone would recognise today’s world order. That’s not good
In a gangsterish age, the UN needs an ultra-pragmatist as secretary-general
economist.com
Interesting deep dive 👇 in @justsecurity.org which shows that there is still scope for the #UNSC to serve as an instrument for joint conflict resolution (or at least conflict management), rather than just as an arena for geopolitical competition (1/2)
Richard Gowan@richardgowan1.bsky.social · 5d agoNew from me and @fortid.crisisgroup.org for @justsecurity.org, a deep dive into China's UNSC diplomacy over Afghanistan, and what it tells us about Beijing's evolving attitude to the UN. www.justsecurity.org/150260/china...
The Effective Peacebuilding Initiative has published a new Global Peace Almanac, including this piece on "New Peacemakers and Old International Institutions" by me. (1/2) almanac.effectivepeace.org/articles/02-...
New Peacemakers and Old International Institutions — Global Peace Almanac
As the institutions that shaped post-Cold War peacemaking lose ground, alternative peacemakers are stepping in. What strategies will they pursue, and can they sustain the peace they help broker?
almanac.effectivepeace.org
"Diplomacy can still help tame regional rivalries. Global norms, political engagement and interstate agreements can still reduce the risk that states building up armaments will come to blows. But who will do this work, and how, remains an open question." www.crisisgroup.org/sbr/global/s...
Causes of Peace in an Era of Hard Power | International Crisis Group
With the post-World War II international order fading away and hostilities on the rise, the prospects for conflict prevention look dim. But the picture is not wholly dark. It is possible to identify t...
crisisgroup.org
"Kofi Annan gave many fine speeches, but one of his most enduring appearances was on the children’s television show Sesame Street, where he mediated between a group of bickering Muppets (perhaps not so different from his day job)." cirsd.org/horizon-arti...
The Seven Parts the UN Secretary General Must Play - CIRSD
William Shakespeare wrote that “one man in his time plays many parts” in the theatre of the world. The Secretary General of the United Nations faces the even greater challenge of playing many differen...
cirsd.org
"A window into how China views its ambitions in the multilateral system . . . also offers clues as to how Beijing and the United States are cohabiting at the U.N. in the Trump era." @justsecurity.org @fortid.crisisgroup.org www.justsecurity.org/150260/china...
Reading the Signals of China’s U.N. Security Council Role in the Afghanistan Mission Renewal
China's prominent role in negotiations over the UN mission in Afghanistan marks a shift in its approach to Security Council diplomacy.
justsecurity.org
New from me and @fortid.crisisgroup.org for @justsecurity.org, a deep dive into China's UNSC diplomacy over Afghanistan, and what it tells us about Beijing's evolving attitude to the UN. www.justsecurity.org/150260/china...
Reading the Signals of China’s U.N. Security Council Role in the Afghanistan Mission Renewal
China's prominent role in negotiations over the UN mission in Afghanistan marks a shift in its approach to Security Council diplomacy.
justsecurity.org
We're hiring! Join ECFR in Berlin as an Advocacy Intern (m/f/d) and gain hands-on experience in European foreign policy, advocacy, and outreach. More info here: https://ecfr.eu/jobs/
Help shape European foreign policy | Career opportunities at ECFR - European Council on Foreign Relations
Join the ECFR team and be part of the future of European foreign policy.
ecfr.eu
President Trump has said that the Board of Peace has reached agreement on the disarmament of Hamas. This IBA Global Insight feature looks at major challenges facing the UN, including the Board of Peace: www.ibanet.org/The-UN-the-i...
The UN, the international order and the ‘Board of Peace’
With the Ukraine war still ongoing after four years and unpredictable turmoil being unleashed in the Middle East, a strong and effective United Nations is needed more than ever.
ibanet.org
China’s active role in shepherding the renewal of the UN Assistance Mission (#UNAMA) in #Afghanistan marks a shift in Beijing’s approach to #UNSecurityCouncil diplomacy, write Daniel Forti and @richardgowan1.bsky.social (Richard Gowan).
Reading the Signals of China’s U.N. Security Council Role in the Afghanistan Mission Renewal
China's prominent role in negotiations over the UN mission in Afghanistan marks a shift in its approach to Security Council diplomacy.
justsecurity.org
New from me and @fortid.crisisgroup.org for @justsecurity.org, a deep dive into China's UNSC diplomacy over Afghanistan, and what it tells us about Beijing's evolving attitude to the UN. www.justsecurity.org/150260/china...
Reading the Signals of China’s U.N. Security Council Role in the Afghanistan Mission Renewal
China's prominent role in negotiations over the UN mission in Afghanistan marks a shift in its approach to Security Council diplomacy.
justsecurity.org
Now online, the video of my recent lecture on the UN and conflict prevention hosted by the Irish UN mission and GCR2P. www.youtube.com/watch?v=quSj...
Evans-Sahnoun Lecture on the Responsibility to Protect, 2026
YouTube video by Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
youtube.com
On 🇺🇦, Guterres "has repeatedly criticized Russia for breaching the UN Charter by launching a war of aggression, which has poisoned his relations with Moscow (...) Yet supporters of Ukraine have faulted him for not being even more outspoken, and for maintaining some contact with Russia" Full brief⤵️🇺🇳
Richard Gowan@richardgowan1.bsky.social · 7d agoIn a new essay for Horizons magazine, I lay out the 7️⃣ roles that every UN Secretary-General must play. 📈 Administrator 🪖 Mediator 💰 Developer 😇 Moralist 📣 Communicator 💫 Visionary 👶 Human cirsd.org/horizon-arti...
"The average UN-related social media feed is a mish-mash of repetitive slogans about the virtues of global cooperation and photographs of middle-aged officials in suits in conference rooms in the UN basement (I am one of them)." cirsd.org/horizon-arti...
The Seven Parts the UN Secretary General Must Play - CIRSD
William Shakespeare wrote that “one man in his time plays many parts” in the theatre of the world. The Secretary General of the United Nations faces the even greater challenge of playing many differen...
cirsd.org
Check out the full recording of the 2026 Evans-Sahnoun Lecture on #R2P, now available! This year's lecture feat. a keynote by Richard Gowan of @crisisgroup.org on the future of UN conflict prevention, mediation & diplomacy, followed by a panel discussion. Watch: www.globalr2p.org/resources/ev...
Evans-Sahnoun Lecture on the Responsibility to Protect, 2026 - Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
On 9 July the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect joined the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN in New York in hosting the 2026 Evans-Sahnoun Lecture on the Responsibility to Protect...
globalr2p.org
In a new essay for Horizons magazine, I lay out the 7️⃣ roles that every UN Secretary-General must play. 📈 Administrator 🪖 Mediator 💰 Developer 😇 Moralist 📣 Communicator 💫 Visionary 👶 Human cirsd.org/horizon-arti...
The Seven Parts the UN Secretary General Must Play - CIRSD
William Shakespeare wrote that “one man in his time plays many parts” in the theatre of the world. The Secretary General of the United Nations faces the even greater challenge of playing many differen...
cirsd.org
In a new essay for Horizons magazine, I lay out the 7️⃣ roles that every UN Secretary-General must play. 📈 Administrator 🪖 Mediator 💰 Developer 😇 Moralist 📣 Communicator 💫 Visionary 👶 Human cirsd.org/horizon-arti...
The Seven Parts the UN Secretary General Must Play - CIRSD
William Shakespeare wrote that “one man in his time plays many parts” in the theatre of the world. The Secretary General of the United Nations faces the even greater challenge of playing many differen...
cirsd.org
My reflections from last year on a possible U.S.-Saudi nuclear deal. Most notable features remain the same: the decoupling of nuclear issues from normalization with Israel and Trump’s political latitude in this space in comparison to a Democratic president. www.crisisgroup.org/alr/united-s...
As Other Partners Struggle with Trump, U.S. and Saudi Arabia Move toward Nuclear Cooperation | International Crisis Group
Crisis Group’s Michael Wahid Hanna on a prospective nuclear cooperation deal between Washington and Riyadh
crisisgroup.org
My latest article on the Algerian War, insurgent normativity, and international norms for armed conflict
International Organization@iojournal.bsky.social · 2w agoWho gets to shape the global normative order? @boydvandijk.bsky.social draws on Algerian and Southern African archives to show how the FLN challenged it through South-South legal politics, establishing a model of insurgent legal activism that persists today. www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
🚨 New from @hrw.org: The US is withholding most of its UN dues & China is paying late. Other states are doing the same. This has forced UN to trim critical human rights & humanitarian work. UN member states took steps to ease funding crisis but only paying in full & on time will end it. More here 👇
Q&A: The UN Funding Crisis and Human Rights Work
The United Nations General Assembly took a crucial step on June 30, 2026, towards easing the world body’s deepening liquidity crisis by amending a longstanding rule that would have required it to refu...
hrw.org
In a recent speech, I explain that "those of us who work around the UN have seen the Security Council and the wider UN system respond to fast-breaking crises in a depressingly consistent fashion." How can we change this? www.crisisgroup.org/spc/global/f...
NEW COMMENTARY | As the Horn of Africa Nears Boiling Point, Time for Urgent Diplomacy The Horn of Africa is beset with overlapping wars and crises, with Sudan and Ethiopia at the centre. www.crisisgroup.org/cmt/africa/h...
As the Horn of Africa Nears Boiling Point, Time for Urgent Diplomacy | International Crisis Group
The Horn of Africa is beset with overlapping wars and crises, with Sudan and Ethiopia at the centre. The crossover among conflicts poses an increasing threat to the region, and the need for de-escalat...
crisisgroup.org
"Rupture is not the whole story, and an uncontrolled proliferation of war is not inevitable." Looking for glimmers of hope in a bleak international security environment? @crisisgroup.org sees a few 👇 www.crisisgroup.org/sbr/global/s...
Causes of Peace in an Era of Hard Power | International Crisis Group
With the post-World War II international order fading away and hostilities on the rise, the prospects for conflict prevention look dim. But the picture is not wholly dark. It is possible to identify t...
crisisgroup.org
ONLINE EVENT | Rebuilding Venezuela: Transition, Earthquakes and a New Relationship with the U.S. 📆 23 July ⏰ 10am Caracas/Washington, DC w/ Phil Gunson, Maryhen Jiménez, Ginger Jacobs, Andrés Antillano, Feliciano Reyna and Renata Segura. Register here: www.crisisgroup.org/how-we-work/...
new rule: the winner of the tournament earns the right to face Cabo Verde for the title
Shiv Ramdas Mens Rice Activist@nameshiv.bsky.social · 3w agoSo far only one football superpower that Spain could not defeat at this world cup- Cabo Verde
NEW SPEECH | The Future of UN Conflict Prevention: Mediation, Diplomacy and the Responsibility to Protect @richardgowan1.bsky.social gave the annual Evans-Sahnoun lecture on the Responsibility to Protect.
The Future of UN Conflict Prevention: Mediation, Diplomacy and the Responsibility to Protect | International Crisis Group
On 9 July, Richard Gowan gave the annual Evans-Sahnoun lecture organised by the Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect and the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN in New York.
crisisgroup.org
Me on UN conflict prevention. www.globalr2p.org/publications...
The Future of UN Conflict Prevention: Mediation, Diplomacy and the Responsibility to Protect - Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect
On 9 July Richard Gowan, Program Director, Global Issues and Institutions at the International Crisis Group, delivered the keynote address at the annual Evans-Sahnoun lecture co-organized by the Globa...
globalr2p.org
Here is the text of a lecture on the future of UN Conflict Prevention last week. www.crisisgroup.org/spc/global/f...
The Future of UN Conflict Prevention: Mediation, Diplomacy and the Responsibility to Protect | International Crisis Group
On 9 July, Richard Gowan gave the annual Evans-Sahnoun lecture organised by the Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect and the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN in New York.
crisisgroup.org
Here is the text of a lecture on the future of UN Conflict Prevention last week. www.crisisgroup.org/spc/global/f...
The Future of UN Conflict Prevention: Mediation, Diplomacy and the Responsibility to Protect | International Crisis Group
On 9 July, Richard Gowan gave the annual Evans-Sahnoun lecture organised by the Global Center for the Responsibility to Protect and the Permanent Mission of Ireland to the UN in New York.
crisisgroup.org
