Story thread · 2 reports / 1 sources

Have we reached the limits of warfare?

thenationalnews.com · 4hShare

Critics of the UN often describe its General Assembly as a talking shop. This week, that somewhat pointed description could arguably be regarded as a compliment. One welcome example of dialogue took place in New York where, despite months of war in the Middle East , a three-hour meeting transpired between US and Iranian officials, brokered by Qatari and Pakistani mediators. Whatever comes of this encounter, the meeting is a timely reminder of one of the most important opportunities the General Assembly can create – the unglamorous work of getting adversaries into a room. As a forum for convening nearly 200 countries, UNGA remains in a field of its own. However, the deeper point is that most modern conflicts end not on the battlefield but around a talks table. Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide put this most precisely in an interview with The National in which he talked about “seeing the limitations of warfare”. At the end of the day, military power has to be translated into an

First report: 'We're seeing the limitations of warfare,' says Norwegian Foreign Minister — thenationalnews.com, 1d