Researcher
John Karlsrud
Contactinfo and files
Summary
John Karlsrud is a Research Professor in the Research group on peace, conflict and development, where he works on coalitions in international security, UN peacekeeping as well as issues related to change in global governance more broadly. He has published a number of books, articles and policy reports on these topics.
Karlsrud earned his PhD at the University of Warwick, and has been a Visiting Fulbright Fellow at the Center on International Cooperation at New York University and a visiting fellow at the European University Institute. He has worked in Bosnia and Hercegovina, Chad, Palestine (West Bank), Norway and USA, and conducted field research and shorter missions to Haiti, Iraq, Liberia, Mozambique, Serbia, Sierra Leone, South Sudan and Ukraine.
Expertise
Education
2014 Senior Executive Course 13, Norwegian Defence University College, Aug-Nov 2014
2010-2014 Ph.D., Politics and Internationals Studies, University of Warwick. Title: Linked Ecologies and Norm Change in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations
2005 Master of Peace and Conflict Studies / International Affairs with Distinction Joint Master from Institute for Graduate Studies in International Affairs, Australian National University and the Peace Research Centre of Oslo
Work Experience
2020- Head of the Reserach group on peace, conflict and development
2015- External Associate, Centre for the Study of Globalisation and Regionalisation, University of Warwick 2015 Fulbright Visiting Fellow, Center on International Cooperation, New York University
2012 Lecturer, IR Master
2010- Programme Manager and Senior Research Fellow at Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI)
2010- Senior Research Fellow, NUPI
2008-2010 Special Assistant to the Special Representative of the Secretary General (SRSG), United Nations Mission in Chad and the Central African Republic (MINURCAT), Chad
2006-2008 Policy and Strategy Analyst, Strategic and Regional Initiatives Unit (SRIU), Regional Bureau for Africa (RBA), UNDP New York HQ
2005-2006 Researcher and Assistant to the Managing Director, Fafo Institute for Applied International Studies (AIS)
2002-2003 Liaison and Operations Officer for NATO in Bosnia and Hercegovina (BiH), seconded by the Norwegian Army
Aktivitet
Filter
Clear all filtersCan the UN Security Council Enhance the Effectiveness of the G5 Sahel Force?
At the United Nations Security Council, and in other forums in Africa and Europe, diplomats are debating different options for increasing international support to the Group of Five Sahel (G5 Sahel) Force. The aim is to enhance its operational capacity and effectiveness in an effort to restore stability in the Sahel. Despite the presence of the UN Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), the G5 Sahel Force, and French and European Union missions, the security situation in the Sahel has significantly deteriorated over the last few years.
Technologies of Peace
This chapter examines the effects of the digital revolution and new information and communication technologies on peacekeeping and peacebuilding. The chapter is concerned with how digital and web-based information and communication technologies can be used to prevent and manage armed violence, foster inclusive societies, and ensure a durable and high-quality peace. The UN is increasingly adopting new technologies, particularly within the field of peacekeeping. To increase situational awareness, UN peacekeeping staff have crowdsourced information and used drones and satellite imagery. In addition, the analysis of peacekeeping data holds great potential for early warning. New technological tools can help foster collaboration, transform attitudes, and give a stronger voice to local communities. Online platforms have been used to monitor elections, document human rights abuses, and facilitate communication between members of different sides in a conflict. However, since one cannot simply assume that technology will change everything for the better, it is crucial to be aware of the ethical implications of the use of new peace technologies. The UN needs to be careful that early warning is translated into early action. Peacekeepers and peacebuilders should also be vigilant when it comes to mitigating the possible abuse and negative side effects of the use of peace technologies. The chapter concludes that peace technologies significantly influence the prospects for peacekeeping and peacebuilding, particularly when the use of technology helps peacekeepers and peacebuilders be more people-centric.
Enhancing the Effectiveness of the G5 Sahel Force by Strengthening Strategic Coherence and International Support
At the UN Security Council and in other forums in Africa and Europe diplomats are considering how to increase international support to the G5 Sahel Force. The support is aimed at filling critical gaps that have hindered the mobility and operational tempo of the G5 Sahel Force. The overall goal is to enhance its operational capacity and effectiveness in an effort to restore stability in the Sahel. Despite the presence of the UN Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), the Group of Five Sahel (G5 Sahel) Force, as well as French-led and European Union missions, the security situation in the Sahel has significantly deteriorated over the last few years. Drawing on lessons identified from the support provided by the UN to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), and a wide number of experiences with voluntary funded trust funds in other mission support set¬tings, we discuss a few political, financial, doctrinal, human rights and operational considerations. We find that a UN support office funded from assessed contributions, complimented with voluntary contribu¬tions, appear to be the only solution for reliable and predictable support to those core needs of the G5 Sahel Force that cannot be met by the G5 Sahel countries themselves, or via bilateral support to those countries.
Climate, Peace and Security Fact Sheet: Somalia
Somalia is highly susceptible to the effects of climate change and extreme weather. Without anticipatory preventive approaches, these factors are likely to exacerbate existing vulnerabilities and reduce the people’s livelihood options, which in turn may have negative impacts for stability and security in Somalia.
Predict and prevent: overcoming early warning implementation challenges in UN peace operations
The UN has made progress in the adoption of new technologies to predict and prevent local violence. To maintain the momentum, it needs to continue to innovate to be able to serve people in need faster, better, and more efficiently. The UN will need to find a way to analyse the enormous amount of data it produces every day. Machine learning to detect patterns in these data and produce early warnings holds great promise in this regard. However, the use of new technologies is not without risk. Collected data can fall into the wrong hands. With budget cuts missions have been forced to reduce their footprint in the field, increasing the reliance on technology. New technology also requires new types of specialist expertise to manage data, and better understanding among all staff of how data should be managed, vetted and put to use. Some have expressed concerns about the use of technologies being at the expense of face-to-face engagements, ultimately resulting in peacekeeping efforts that are divorced from realities on the ground. From a practical point of view, the UN will also have to resolve an uneasy tension between enabling access to these data in order to conduct data-driven early warning analyses on the one hand and the need to prevent any data breaches on the other hand.
United Nations peace operations and International Relations theory: An introduction
International Relations (IR) theories may seem abstract and arcane. With this book, we want to dispel this stereotype. The contributors to this volume demonstrate how IR theories can be applied to a very practical problem: UN peace operations, 1 one of the main instruments of international conflict management. Besides peace operations, the chapters shed light on many other aspects of international affairs, such as multilateral co-operation, the role of international bureaucracies, and evolution and contestation of norms. At the same time, the reader whose interest in the volume has been sparked by its thematic focus will find state-of-the-art research on the main issues affecting UN peace operations, ranging from the impact of rising powers to a widening space for individual initiative.
Doing Less With More? The Difficult ‘Return’ of Western Troop Contributing Countries to United Nations Peacekeeping
Among others, the deployment of the UN stabilization mission to Mali (MINUSMA) in 2013 has been characterized by a number of researchers as a ‘return’ of Western troop contributors to United Nations (UN) peacekeeping in Africa. The aim of this report is to look at the reality of that ‘return,’ and whether it has enhanced the effectiveness of UN peacekeeping overall and of the UN mission in Mali in particular. In policy and academic circles, the return has been hailed as an opportunity for Western member states to contribute niche capabilities such as ISRs including surveillance drones, military transport and attack helicopters, special forces, and to share experiences and practices developed over a long period of counterinsurgency and counterterrorism warfare in e.g. Afghanistan and Iraq. In Mali, the UN mission is mired in a situation where these experiences were considered as relevant, all the more so as some considered that new UN peacekeeping missions could be deployed to Libya, Somalia, Syria, or in Yemen, thereby making Mali a key testing ground for the future from this perspective. However, while Western countries may indeed have lessons to share, the report argues that so far their contribution to MINUSMA has been a very mixed blessing. The report explores these challenges and impact of them on the effectiveness of UN peacekeeping, defined as the ability to sustain peace over time.
Assessing the Effectiveness of the United Nations Mission in Mali
Until 2016 MINUSMA managed to strengthen stability in northern Mali, decreasing the number of civilians killed in the conflict, and allowing large numbers of displaced persons to return home. MINUSMA also assisted the peace process, culminating in the 2015 Algiers Agreement. Many of these achievements are still standing. However, since 2016 MINUSMA’s effectiveness in terms of stabilisation and the protection of civilians has decreased. In the North, the signatory parties have been making slow progress in the implementation of the Algiers Agreement and the 2018 Pact for Peace. In addition, central Mali has destabilised significantly, as Jihadist activities have stoked a vicious cycle of inter-communal violence that has reached unprecedented levels. MINUSMA has only been mandated to help the Malian government address the situation since June 2018. As one of the largest multidimensional peacekeeping operations – currently including nearly 13,000 soldiers and 1,800 police officers from 57 contributing countries, and almost 750 civilians – MINUSMA has been provided with significant resources and an extraordinarily ambitious mandate. However, the Mission finds itself at a crossroads. It needs time to succeed, but this is valuable time Mali does not have. Civilians have come under increasing attack, and the US, in particular, is losing interest in supporting a costly UN peace operation that is not able to deliver quick results. This report considers the degree to which there is an alignment between the mission’s resources and its mandate. It also makes an assessment of the options available to the Mission to increase its effectiveness in the face of extremely challenging circumstances.