Kofi Annan

The UN support for youth in disarmament affairs has grown over time. Although Kofi Annan and Ban Ki-Moon increased the relevance of disarmament within the UN agenda, the UNSG Antonio Guterres finally achieved consolidating the importance of youth in disarmament affairs and promoted programs to support and widen the youth involvement in the discussion of disarmament. With that, the main aim of the UN has been to promote the education of younger generations in matters related to peace and security, such as disarmament, and with that contribute to the fourth Sustainable Development Goal, which is quality education. 

1989 was a momentous year. The fall of the Berlin Wall in November 1989 signified the end of the Cold War and the beginning of a new world order. The implications of these unfolding events for the UN were hard to predict at that point, but it was clear that they were inaugurating a new era.

The two humanitarian interventions of 1999, Kosovo and East Timor, have been extensively evaluated and compared with each other. There always is a temptation to consider Kosovo a deplorable aberration and East Timor a shining example of the way it should be done. That would be wrong: Kosovo might even be closer to the norm.

Vredesstichting, vredeshandhaving, vredesopbouw; identieke termen, of verschillend van elkaar? Van de drie termen kent alleen de term vredesopbouw een analogie met de bouwkunst. Bij vredesopbouw worden muren afgebroken, fundamenten gelegd en bruggen geslagen. Biedt de analogie met de bouwkunst, met haar regels van de architectuur, een passende vergelijking voor de wijze waarop de Verenigde Naties bouwt aan vrede?