Explainer
Ceasefire vs Armistice vs Peace Agreement: What Is the Difference?
All three can reduce or end fighting, but they usually operate at different levels. The text of the agreement matters more than the label.
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Topic: Diplomacy
Explainer
How Peace Talks Work: Negotiation, Mediation and Guarantees
Peace negotiations are processes, not single meetings. This guide explains mediators, preconditions, frameworks, sequencing and why implementation often determines success.
Explainer
What Is the UN Security Council Veto?
Five permanent Security Council members can block substantive draft resolutions with a negative vote. Here is what the veto can—and cannot—do.
Explainer
Are UN General Assembly Resolutions Legally Binding?
Most General Assembly resolutions are recommendations rather than binding commands to States, but they can still carry major political, institutional and legal significance.
Explainer
How UN Peacekeeping Works
UN peacekeeping is neither a global army nor simple neutrality. Missions operate under Security Council mandates and three core principles.
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What Do International Sanctions Actually Do?
Sanctions can target States, companies, sectors or individuals. They are policy tools, not a single legal mechanism, and their humanitarian effects depend on design…
Explainer
What Is an Arms Embargo?
An arms embargo restricts transfers of weapons or military-related goods to a country, group or listed entity. Scope and enforcement vary by regime.
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NATO Article 5 Explained: Does an Attack on One Mean War for All?
Article 5 treats an armed attack on one NATO ally as an attack on all, but each ally decides the action it deems necessary,…
Explainer
ICC vs ICJ: What Is the Difference?
The ICC prosecutes individuals for international crimes; the ICJ decides legal disputes between States. The two Hague courts are often confused.
Explainer
How the International Criminal Court Works
Jurisdiction, complementarity, investigations, arrest warrants and trials at the ICC—explained without treating an accusation as a conviction.