Handbook of Regional Conflict Resolution Initiatives in the Global South

During  the first half of the twentieth century, the international system was  largely dominated by the USA and the colonial powers of western Europe.  After the two world wars, the political and economic dominance of these  states guaranteed them and their allies an almost complete control of  world politics. However, as it is the norm in the international system,  power structures are not immutable. After the end of the Cold War, rapid  changes to the existing international hierarchies took place, as new  countries from the so-called ‘‘developing world’’ began to emerge as  crucial actors capable of questioning and altering the power dynamics of  the world. It is therefore unthinkable to ignore emerging countries  such as Russia, the People’s Republic of China, India, Brazil or South  Africa in the decision-making process in today’s world order.

In  addition, there is a group of smaller, yet increasingly important  countries that, while acknowledging their inability radically to change  the rules of the international system, are still eager to shift power  relations and enhance their influence in the world. Argentina, Colombia,  Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, South Korea, Mexico, Nigeria, Pakistan, Saudi  Arabia, Turkey and Vietnam are generally recognised as part of this  grouping of emerging powers from the Global South.

While  there is a consensus amongst academics that emerging powers from the  Global South must have a stabilising role within their own regions,  previous analyses have focused primarily on the impact that emerging  powers have had in their own regions’ conflict resolution initiatives.  This volume, instead, aims to go beyond these analyses and provide new  insights regarding the effect that this stabilising role has on the  continental and global positioning of emerging powers. In other words,  this book explores the relation between a country’s involvement in  conflict resolution initiatives and its positioning in the international  system. The volume will contribute to this approach using the  perspective of academics and practitioners from countries of the Global  South, particularly from states that have strengthened - or sometimes  weakened - their position in the international hierarchy of power  through a leading role in regional conflict resolution initiatives.