C/ Felipe IV, 5, bajo izda Madrid Spain Tel.:

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1 C/ Felipe IV, 5, bajo izda Madrid Spain Tel.:

2 Introduction Until very recently Spain did not have a tradition of think tanks and policy oriented institutes that could serve governments in formulating their policies, and enrich at the same time the public discourse and the quality of the debate within civil society. That void became especially problematic with the birth of an independent Spanish foreign policy in the wake of the dramatic improvement in Spain s international position as from at least the mid 1980 s. The voice of Spain was from now on to be heard loud and clear in the process of the construction of a united Europe, in the formulation of NATO s strategic priorities, in the issues pertaining to the Arab-Israeli conflict and the Mediterranean (Spain hosted two major Conferences: The Madrid Peace Conference in 1991 and The Barcelona Conference of 1995), in a new approach to the Maghreb, in an improvement of its relations with Latin-America to the degree of becoming for the first time a major political reference for the countries of the region and a real economic partner for most of them, Spain s military contingents were now sent to serve as peacekeepers in the Balkans and Central America, and in the future the may also be sent to Afghanistan and Haiti, Spain also used its improved economic standard to back its strategic priorities by providing financial assistance to countries in the Maghreb, in South America and to the Palestinian Authority. However, this spectacular leap in Spain s international position and the growth of its role in conflict areas were too abrupt to be fully understood and appreciated by public opinion, and civil society could hardly digest the change and actively participate in bringing it about. This gap between government and society, between the democratic formulation of policy and its execution, started to be bridged in recent years. FRIDE Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior and its offspring, the Club de Madrid, both of which asserted the role of Spain as a platform for debate on global issues, are a major contribution towards the integration of civil society into the forces of policymaking in a country with an increasing global commitment. The Fundación Ortega y Gasset, albeit with a slightly more academic emphasis, has likewise done an important work through its Centro Español de Relaciones Internacionales (CERI), and through the other facets of its diverse activities. Now, those two institutions, FRIDE and FOG, have joined forces to create an International Centre for Peace (TIC) to be an independent, policy oriented Think Tank seeking to make a substantial contribution in the field of conflict resolution. The Toledo International Centre for Peace is an independent, non-profit organization seeking to contribute to the prevention and resolution of violent or potentially violent conflicts and to the consolidation of peace between and within states, in a framework of respect for human rights and democratic values. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, the Regional Government of Castilla La-Mancha and the City Council of Toledo have also joined the TIC as founders. Thus, the TIC can count on the support of both Spanish Central and Regional Administration in the Centre s pursuit of harmony and peace in the world. 2

3 Founders Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation represented by its Minister, Mr. Miguel Ángel Moratinos Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha, Represented by its President, Mr. José María Barreda City of Toledo, Represented by its Major, Mr. José Manuel Molina Mr. Shlomo Ben Ami, Former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel Mr. Diego Hidalgo Schnur, President, Fundación para las Relaciones Internacionales y el Diálogo Exterior - FRIDE Fundación José Ortega y Gasset, Represented by its President, Mr. Antonio Garrigues-Walker Mr. Gregorio Marañón, President, Real Fundación de Toledo Alphabetically 3

4 Structure and personnel Board of Trustees 3 18 members Secretary of the board of trustees Claudia Medina President Antonio Garrigues-Walker Vice-Presidents Carlos Westendorp Shlomo Ben-Ami Nabil Shaat Advisory Committee Emma Bonino Baltasar Garzón Bernard Kouchner Federico Mayor Zaragoza. Financial Director Elena Roncal Director General * Emilio Cassinello Institutional Relations Director Pablo de la Cueva Administration and Operations Near and Middle East and Africa Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management Andean Region, Central America and South East Europe Programme Director Researcher 1 Researcher 2 Project Director Programme Director Researcher 1 Researcher 2 Project Director Programme Director Researcher 1 Researcher 2 Project Director * José Luis Herrero, Director of FRIDE, is the acting Deputy Director of the CIT. 4

5 Activities In the next years, the Centre will develop its capacity to carry out the following activities: Second Track Diplomacy and Facilitation The TIC will undertake, at its own initiative or at the request of the parties to a conflict or interested third parties, second track diplomacy aimed at complementing the governmental track. The TIC will facilitate communication between parties to a conflict and interested third parties from governmental and non-governmental circles. Thus, second track diplomacy channels will be established to work out solutions to conflicts and actively advocate for their implementation. A project of this nature has already been put to work and is close to its completion. This is The Gaza Governance Project (see below) Field Projects The TIC carries out part of its activities in conflict zones. These activities include facilitating dialogue opportunities between the parties to a conflict, as well as research directed towards at negotiation processes or peace processes. The TIC dedicates special attention to projects that promotes the confidence between conflict parties. Research and Policy Development The TIC will develop its own capacity for independent research and establish a network of partnerships with research institutions. Research will be orientated to generating timely policy options and recommendations and to enhance the capacity of the different stake holders for conflict prevention and resolution. The TIC will make its research available publicly and develop a series of targeted policymakers seminars 5

6 Training for Professionals The TIC will contribute to the schooling of professionals and to the enhancement of the capacities of organizations engaged in peace-related activities. The TIC will offer tailor-made training for practitioners from governments and non-governmental organizations, the military and the media. It will likewise offer training to professionals seeking to play a role in conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict development. The TIC seeks to bring practitioners and academics together and to facilitate the interchange of knowledge, ideas and information between scholars, government officials, the military, international civil servants, the NGO community and the mass media. Through practitioners seminars, the TIC expects to provide a platform for experience sharing among practitioners within related areas and a conceptual framework for the analysis of such experiences. Public Awareness The TIC will contribute to increase general awareness of peace-related issues through participation in the public debate, constructive exchange with the mass media and public information activities. 6

7 Programmes When fully developed, the Programmes will include projects and activities on issues in Africa, Central America and South East Europe. However, in the initial phases, the TIC will focus on the following Programmes: 1. NEAR AND MIDDLE EAST The Near and Middle East Programme is at the core of the TIC s priorities. The Programme has two sub-programmes, one focuses on regional stability and the other on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Past Events: Regional Stability Conference: Iraq, The Day After - Toledo, 12 May 2003 The Conference gathered a prestigious panel of European and Middle East experts (the participants included, among others, Robin Cook from Britain, Hubert Verdrine from France, Wssama al-baz from Egypt, Amr Moussa, the Arab League s General Secretary, Imad Falugi, former Minister of Communications of the Palestinian Authority, Manuel Marín, Bernardino León and Ana Palacio, at that time Minister of Foreign Affairs, from Spain, etc.) to analyse the consequences of the Iraq war on the international system, the Middle East in general and the Israeli-Palestinian peace process in particular. The multilateral message and conclusions that came out of the conference have been fully vindicated by the post-war dilemmas in Iraq. International Colloquium: From Afghanistan to Iraq: A new model for military intervention? Barcelona, October 2003 (In collaboration whit Forum Barcelona 2004 and España con ACNUR) The colloquium consisted of several panels of experts in international relations with in-depth knowledge of the situation in Afghanistan and Iraq. The panels analysed the impact of these two wars on the international political and legal system, and addressed aspects of reconstruction and democratisation. Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process The Centre advocates a more robust third party engagement in the Israeli- Palestinian conflict as the only way to attain a sustainable solution to the conflict. Our Middle East programme carries out research to prepare that course of action, and it undertakes initiatives to influence policy makers and public opinion to that effect. 7

8 Past Events: Lecture: Political, economical and social consequences of the Israeli wall/fence: a Palestinian perspective Madrid, 24 November 2003 Stephanie Koury, Legal Advisor at the Negotiation Affairs Department of the Palestinian Liberation Organisation (PLO), offered -from a Palestinian perspective- an update on the advancement of the construction of the wall/fence and its present and future consequences. International Conference: An International Solution for Palestine? - Madrid, November 2003 The conference brought Palestinian delegates of the highest level since 1991 together with a Israeli delegation with a broad political representation. The participants explored the possibilities and requirements for an intervention by the international community to support a sustainable solution on the Israel-Palestinian conflict. In addition to the Israeli and Palestinian delegations, international experts on the Middle East and UN Peacekeeping operations also attended the conference. Thus, the conference on An International Solution for Palestine? was attended by the key political actors in the conflict such as Gideon Saar, the head of Likud s parliamentary group in the Knesset, and Dalia Itzik, the head of the Labour Party s parliamentary group. General Danny Yatom, an ex-chief of the Israeli Mossad and currently a member of the Knesset, and Ahmad Tibi, an Israeli-Arab member of the Knesset, also participated. Mohammed Dahlan leaded the Palestinian team that included, among others, Ghassan Khatib, the Minister of Labour in the Palestinian Authority, and the PLO s Ambassador in Madrid. The conference was attended by most of the Arab ambassadors in the Spanish capital. Among the international figures we were privileged to have with us Bernard Kouchner and Ian Martin. Lecture: The fence/wall of defence, the security consequences and the humanitarian aspects: the Israeli perspective - Madrid, 10 February 2004 The Israeli Ambassador to Spain, Victor Harel, presented the official Israeli position on the objectives, justification, characteristics and construction of the security fence. 8

9 Ongoing Events: Working Group: Gaza Governance Project First meeting, Madrid April, Second meeting, London May, Third meeting, Toledo June, (In collaboration whit the London based Portland Trust) At the Centre, taking as the starting point the initiative of Prime Minister Sharon on an unilateral withdrawal from The Gaza Strip, we ganged immediately the advantages and the weaknesses of the new project, and established a working group to elaborate a comprehensive set of conditions that, if implemented, could turn the Gaza initiative from a step of despair that may breed chaos and war into an internationally supervised disengagement within a wider peace framework that can be acceptable to the parties and, no less importantly, the international community. The Working Group unite political representatives and experts from Israel and Palestine with the objective of proposing a model for governing Gaza after the implementation of the announced Israeli withdrawal. The model includes the following aspects: - Reorganisation of the Palestinian security bodies - Civil administration - Borders - Economic development - The role of third parties and/or the international community The uniqueness of our project lies not only in its comprehensive approach it sets up the military conditions for the disengagement, the role of the international task forces, the economic consequences of disengagement, the handling of the evacuated Israeli settlements, and the Palestinian political structure that needs to be put in place to fill the vacuum created by Israelis withdrawal but also in the composition of the group working in it. We are also in current touch with Javier Solana, the EU s Commissioner for foreign policy. Given the centrality of the Egyptian role for any future peace enterprise in Gaza, we have been in touch with the Egyptians to send an observer to our deliberations. Three workshops have already taken place during 2004 and the group will continue working in the next months. Upcoming Events: Settlement by Resettlement Project (SBR) The objective of the SBR project is to facilitate the negotiation process through providing reliable research on the two topics that remain permanent obstacles to the peace process; the exact magnitude of the illegal settlements and the requirements for resettling the settlers within Israel, and the number of refugees and displaced Palestinians and the requirements for their partial resettlement in the settlements liberated by the settlers. 9

10 The First phase of the project is to survey the opinion of the Israeli settlers to forecast their attitude and reaction towards an eventual program of resettlement. The Second phase consists of a technical study of the possibilities for resettlement in Israel of the settlers. The Third phase is a technical study of the difficulties associated with the housing of Palestinians in settlements previously evacuated by the Israelis. Debate: Self-criticism and Lessons Learned: Israelis and Palestinians analyse their weaknesses and mistakes during the negotiations and propose lessons for the future. The Centre aims at organizing a meeting in which Israelis and Palestinians will present their own mistakes made during the negotiations, and to propose formulas to prevent them in the future. Saeb Erekat, Minister for Negotiations Affairs of the Palestinian authority, will set out the Palestinian perspective, and Shlomo Ben-Ami, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel, will talk about the Israeli experience. The meeting is planned for October. 10

11 2. CONFLICT PREVENTION AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT The Conflict Prevention and Crisis Management programme centres on the study and analysis of multinational peacekeeping interventions. This includes UN Peacekeeping operations as well as other multilateral interventions that result in regime change and/or post-conflict reconstruction. The programme does not focus at the pure military aspects of these operations, but rather on civil-military relations and the civil roles conducted by military personnel. Areas of the Programme: International civil administration Rule of law and penal justice in post-conflict situations Regime change and democratisation Humanitarian assistance Electoral process Training for professionals Past Events: Colloquium: Civil and civil-military aspects in peacekeeping operations and postconflict resolution: the Spanish Experience Madrid, 23 April 2004 The colloquium had as its objective to facilitate the interchange of information and opinions between institutions and experts involved in these types of operations, in order to create a debate from which they could extract information useful for the Spanish strategy in future peacekeeping operations. 11

12 3. Andean Region The Centre will carry out a programme of policy oriented research that may also include Track Two projects to facilitate a rapprochement between the parties in specific conflicts within the Region. The Programme will initially have a special emphasis on Colombia and on the regional repercussions of the internal Colombian situation. The Centre will primarily address two of the central problems currently debated in the country. One is the threat that the conflict extends beyond the national borders and that could possibly turn the issue into a regional conflict. The second question is that of the advantages and disadvantages of a possible exchange of prisoners. From the initial phases of the design of this programme, the CIT is working in collaboration with organizations similar to the Centre and based in Bogotá. Past Events: Colloquium: Politics in the war. Comparative perspectives. Bogota,18 November 2002 (in collaboration with the Fundación José Ortega y Gasset and the Fundación Buen Gobierno). The participants of the colloquium included Prof. Malcolm Deas of Oxford Universtiy, General Luis Alejandre Sintes of the Spanish Army, Shlomo Ben-Ami, Juan Manuel Santos, former Minister of the Treasury of Colombia and Pedro Medellín, Director of the Fundación José Ortega y Gasset in Bogotá. Colloquium: The Democratic Security Policy. Bogota, February 2003 (in collaboration with the Fundación José Ortega y Gasset and the Fundación Buen Gobierno). The colloquium gathered, among others, Ana María Salazar, adviser to Bill Clinton, Narcis Serra, former Vice-President of the Spanish Government and former Minister of Defence, Shlomo Ben-Ami, Juan Manuel Santos, Marta Lucía Ramírez, former Colombian Minister of Defence, Guillermo Owen of the Naval Postgraduate School of the United States and Pedro Medellín. Forum: How humanitarian is this exchange? Fundación Buen Gobierno, Bogota, 12 May 2004 In this colloquium on International Humanitarian Law and the problem of the exchange of prisoners, participated the former Colombian President Ernesto Samper Pizano, Shlomo Ben-Ami, Augusto Ramírez Ocampo, former Colombian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Rafael Nieto Loaiza, former Colombian Vice-Minister of Justice and Alfredo Rangel Suárez, researcher and political analyst. 12

13 Funding The TIC aims at consolidating a diverse funding base, as the TIC sees this as critical to political independence and credibility. Contributions can be generic budget support or programme designated. The TIC will disclose all programme designated contributions. Budget support contributions can be anonymous. The TIC accepts donations from individuals, private corporations, non-governmental organizations and governments and governmental agencies. The TIC will develop a contributors scheme to facilitate donations 13