Background to the EU CoP23

Organised annually since 2019, the EU Community of Practice on Peace Mediation (CoP) has become the flagship EU event that convenes international actors, policy makers, practitioners, experts, and representatives of civil society in the field of peace mediation from around the globe. It allows discussions on mediation and peace process support and enables knowledge-exchange and constructive reflections on challenges and best practices, feeding directly into EU policy and practice. The CoP stimulates peer learning, expands the global peace-building community and inspires creative thinking.

The first CoP took place in person, while the 2020 and 2021 editions took place in a virtual format amidst the Covid-19 pandemic. The fourth edition in 2022 was held in a hybrid format, with both physical (in Brussels) and online participation. The hybrid format proved its value added and will be maintained in 2023. The physical component will be maintained in Brussels and act as a mediation-hub during the CoP, convening peace mediation practitioners from all over the world. Since May 2023, a Steering Group convened by the EEAS Conflict Prevention and Mediation Support Division and composed of several peacebuilding organisations has led the preparations of the event.  

With Russia’s continued aggression against Ukraine, the EU is facing a prolonged war on its doorstep. In consequence, the EU has strengthened its posture on security and defense. However, at the same time, non-violent conflict resolution and mediation between conflict parties is one of the first and foremost crisis response measures of the EU. Peace remains a core EU foreign policy objective.

In light of these challenges, the CoP will highlight the contributions of mediation and dialogue support to the prevention, mitigation and management of conflict.  Importantly, it will enable to examine instances of mediation that have yielded positive outcomes, in order to discern effective strategies, and gather concrete recommendations from the practitioner’s community.  It will also contribute to the discussion how to further enhance the implementation of the 2020 Concept on EU Peace Mediation, in particular offering a platform to present the reviewed EEAS Peace Mediation Guidelines.