Peace Processes in Northern Ireland and Turkey

Abstract

This book assesses the impact of political, non-violent resolution efforts in the Northern Irish and Turkish-Kurdish peace processes. It offers an important contribution to conflict-resolution research, theorising the various stages involved in the attempted resolution of asymmetric conflicts. By relying on primary sources, including interviews and recently declassified archival papers, it presents an innovative framework for conflict resolution, a starting-point for further research on managing peace processes and ethno-nationalist conflicts. This book challenges the notion of ‘conflict resolution’ in these two peace processes, both far-reaching ethno-nationalist conflicts in the post-Cold War era. Incorporating fieldwork carried out until 2015, the book compares these conflicts during major peace attempts, from early secret talks and semi-official peace initiatives, to multilateral and internationalised conflict-resolution processes through not only main armed protagonists, but also independent third parties. It analyses the political resolution efforts for ending the IRA and PKK’s armed campaigns and establishing a peace agreement. It argues that peace initiatives are ongoing processes which contain not only formal peace initiatives, but also informal and secret peace efforts. It suggests that formal and informal initiatives together embody conflict resolution processes through three major aspects: backchannel communications as the unofficial aspect, peace organisations as the informal and semi-official aspect, and negotiations as the official aspect of conflict resolution efforts, which operate at the elite level of conflict resolution.