Third-Parties (DP IB Global Politics: HL): Revision Note

Third-party actor involvement in conflict

• In conflicts involving multiple parties, third-party actors play a critical role in preventing, managing and resolving violence

  • They include intergovernmental organisations such as the UN and NATO, intrastate groups operating within conflict zones, and specialist organisations focused on mediation, negotiation and intervention

• Third parties may be neutral facilitators seeking a peaceful resolution, or active participants with a stake in the outcome

  • Their involvement can either help bring conflict to an end or, in some cases, complicate it further

• The effectiveness of third-party involvement depends on the trust of the conflicting parties, the legitimacy of the intervening actor and whether the underlying causes of conflict are addressed alongside any immediate ceasefire

Intergovernmental organisations (IGOs)

• Intergovernmental organisations, including the United Nations (UN), play a significant role in preventing, managing and resolving conflict

• Sometimes IGOs, such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO), actively engage in conflict

The United Nations (UN)

• The UN is primarily involved in conflict prevention

  • It is a platform for states to resolve differences diplomatically rather than through violence

  • When violent conflict emerges, it takes an active role in attempting to manage and resolve it

• The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is a legally-binding court that resolves disputes between states and prevents conflict

  • Because of state sovereignty only states that agree to the jurisdiction of the ICJ are involved

• The Security Council has the power to issue ceasefire directives and attempts to bring about negative peace

  • It can issue directives to UN member states to enforce economic sanctions

  • Its five permanent members have different political alliances

    • This can prevent action being taken, as all have the power to veto

• The UN play an active role in peacemaking efforts

  • UN peacekeeping missions can act as physical barriers in conflict zones to ensure negative peace

• The International Criminal Court (ICC) can bring individuals who have committed war crimes and atrocities to trial

  • The jurisdiction of the ICC is limited to those states that have ratified the Rome Statute

• The UN frequently collaborates with other IGOs, NGOs and states around conflict

  • Responsibility to Protect (R2P) allows the use of force by the UN to intervene if genocide or crimes against humanity are taking place

    • R2P is controversial as the UN’s mission is to preserve peace
      

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) 

• NATO is an international alliance made up of 32 member states

  • It sees itself as an organisation that primarily prevents conflict and responds to crisis

• Each member state is expected to spend 2% of its GDP on defence

  • However, not all do - this has caused friction, particularly with the USA

• NATO primarily serves as a system of collective defence

  • Article 5 of its charter states that an attack against one member is considered an attack against all

• It does not have its own military force

  • Member states contribute their own militaries if needed

Intrastate groups

• Intrastate groups are organised groupings that operate within the borders of a single country and seek to influence or challenge the authority of its government

  • Some intrastate groups can worsen conflict while others attempt to lessen the impact

Intrastate groups that may be involved in conflict

• Civil society, NGOs and religious groups

  • These groups attempt to help civilians who have been impacted by conflict

    • For example, Al Sham Humanitarian Foundation provides shelter and food to victims of conflict in northern Syria

• Rebel and resistance groups

  • These groups may have long wanted to overthrow the government and take advantage of conflict to launch attacks

    • For example, rebel groups Jama'at Nusrat al-Islam wal-Muslimin (JNIM) and Islamic State Sahel Province (IS-Sahel) have attacked the Mali government simultaneously

• Other groups attempting to further their own interests to take advantage of the chaos of war include criminal gangs and profiteers

  • For example, in Haiti, the gang coalition Viv Ansanm exploited the collapse of state authority after 2021 to seize capital Port-au-Prince, profiting from kidnappings and extortion while the state was unable to respond

• Peacebuilding groups

  • Some groups attempt to help the community with peacebuilding after the conflict has ended

    • For example, Respond and Break the Silence is seeking justice for the victims of the Philippines government's 'War on Drugs'

Mediation, negotiation and intervention

Mediation and negotiation

• Mediation and negotiation are usually facilitated by a range of third parties

States 

• Powerful states who see themselves as global leaders, such as the USA and China 

• States located in the region where the conflict is taking place

IGOs including the United Nations

• The UN provides a neutral, globally recognised platform for peace talks

• The UN Security Council can mandate ceasefires, deploy peacekeeping forces and impose sanctions to create conditions for negotiation

• The UN Secretary-General can act as a direct mediator or appoint special envoys to facilitate dialogue

Regional IGOs such as the African Union

• Regional organisations often have good local knowledge, cultural understanding and political credibility with conflicting parties

• The African Union has mediated in conflicts in South Sudan, Somalia and the Central African Republic, brokering ceasefires and monitoring peace agreements

• Regional IGOs can act more quickly than the UN and may be better placed to apply peer pressure on conflicting states within their region

NGOs specialising in global mediation

• E.g. the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue works confidentially with governments, armed groups and other parties to facilitate peace talks and negotiate ceasefires

Intervention

• Intervention is usually a last resort if multiple attempts at mediation and negotiation have failed and people are suffering grave human rights violations such as genocide

  • Many question the legitimacy of armed intervention because

    • Intervention violates state sovereignty

    • Powerful states have been accused of using intervention as an excuse to invade countries and seize natural resources

    • Intervention can escalate conflict rather than end it

    • Intervention may work in the short term to bring negative peace, but it leaves long-lasting problems

Election monitoring

• This is a key tool used by third parties to support peace and stability following conflict

  • International observers, including the UN, the African Union and the Carter Center, oversee elections in post-conflict states, verifying that the process is free, fair and credible

  • This helps to legitimise newly elected governments, reduce the risk of disputed results reigniting conflict and support the transition from negative peace to longer-term political stability

    • For example, the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has supported electoral preparations as part of the broader peace process