April 6, 2014 Effects of Dayton Agreement for Peace Is Subject of Book Discussion

War does not stop when the armed conflict ends. In an eyewitness account of a political crisis in Bosnia and Herzegovina in 2007, author Philippe Leroux-Martin demonstrates how interventions from foreign powers to end armed conflict can create new forms of conflict.

Leroux-Martin will discuss and sign his new book, “Diplomatic Counterinsurgency: Lessons from Bosnia and Herzegovina” (Cambridge University Press, 2014), on Tuesday, April 22, at noon in the West Dining Room, located on the sixth floor of the James Madison Memorial Building, 101 Independence Ave. S.E., Washington, D.C. This Books & Beyond event, co-sponsored by the Center for the Book in the Library of Congress and the Library’s European Division, is free and open to the public; no tickets are required.

The new types of conflict that Leroux-Martin describes can lead groups to challenge the power of fragile states through political and legal means. Countering such challenges is an integral, but often ignored, part of peace processes. How do these nonviolent wars evolve? How can the power of fragile states be challenged through nonviolent means in the aftermath of armed conflict? And what is the role of diplomacy in countering such challenges?

Leroux-Martin is a Canadian lawyer who worked for the Office of the High Representative in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was a member of a team of legal advisers who oversaw the legal aspects of the Dayton peace agreement implementation. Leroux-Martin also acted as chief legal adviser to the Police Restructuring Commission of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is currently a nonresident fellow at the Future of Diplomacy Project of the Kennedy School of Government.

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