Peace mediators from all over the world gathered in Norway at the Oslo Forum in the last week of June, to share experiences on ongoing mediation in peace processes in the Middle East, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Somalia.
05/07/2007 :: Kofi Annan, UN-diplomat Martti Ahtisaari, Chief prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo and the Norwegian Minister of International Development Erik Solheim were among the participants at the fifth Oslo Forum that took place 26-29 June.
Shared responsibility for peace
Peace keeping and conflict resolutions are cornerstones in Norway’s foreign policy and the conference is an extension of Norway’s attempt to professionalize and to put on record the work in international peace accords.
“We share a responsibility to engage to prevent and solve armed conflicts”, Norwegian Minister of International Development Erik Solheim said at the opening.
Craftsmanship of mediation
The event aims to follow the flow of peace accords and to focus as much as possible on actual or potential conflicts, their contexts, and the techniques and strategies needed to approach them, rather than theoretical concepts.
Additionally, the international meeting endeavours to prepare and strengthen the international community’s ability to act upon armed conflicts, as well as to discuss aspects of the craftsmanship of mediation and assess tools and strategies of mediation.
Annual event
Oslo Forum is an annual event that started in 2002. I joint venture between the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Geneva based organisation Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue.
The opening of the annual Oslo Forum 2007. Photo: Petter Foss/ MFA Norway.
Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs