ZIF meets European partner organizations in Stockholm

From 6 to 8 December, the Swedish Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA) hosted a meeting of the directors of leading European partner organizations. ZIF Executive Director Dr. Astrid Irrgang and Deputy Director Dr. Katja Niethammer met in Stockholm with FBA Director Per Olsson-Fridh, Kirsi Henriksson from the Crisis Management Centre (CMC) Finland and Sarah Taylor from the British Office for Conflict, Stabilization and Mediation (OCSM). This so-called "Directors' Quad" provides a platform for exchange on national and international challenges in the field of civilian crisis management.

The meeting focused on the current foreign and security policy situation and, above all, its impact on the instrument of peace operations. The challenges are manifold: all partners agreed that the inclusion of local perspectives, including those of civil society, in peace operations is important in order to find truly appropriate answers for the respective contexts and to generate local ownership. Strengthening local ownerhip also means improving the ability of missions to react flexibly to changing conditions. While these goals are widely supported at international level, implementation on the ground is often difficult.

"The regular exchange with our European partner organizations is enormously enriching for us at ZIF," says Dr. Katja Niethammer. "Precisely because multilateralism is increasingly being questioned - also in Europe - we are engaging in international discussions. We want to continue to use our shared vision and expertise in the future to cooperatively improve civilian peace management and strengthen peace operations."

While in Stockholm, Dr. Astrid Irrgang and Dr. Katja Niethammer also met with the Chairman of ZIF's International Advisory Board, Jonas Alberoth, and with the German Ambassador to Sweden, Christina Beinhoff.