Since 1999, the International Crisis Group’s Phil Gunson has lived in Caracas. Last week, I caught up with him in New York, and we talked about how much — and how little — has changed in Venezuela. Our conversation:

NEW ANALYST’S NOTEBOOK | UN Vote Shows Enduring but Uneven International Support for Ukraine @richardgowan1.bsky.social analyses the UN vote marking the fourth anniversary of Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine. www.crisisgroup.org/anb/europe-c...

Quick thing from me @crisisgroup.org on yesterday's UNGA vote on Ukraine. www.crisisgroup.org/anb/europe-c...

I talk to @ipsnews.net about the race to be next UNSG. www.ipsnews.net/2026/02/the-...

Summer internships with @justsecurity.org, spread the word. www.justsecurity.org/just-securit...

So Satan is at the Munich Security Conference. Less likely to scare the Europeans than JD Vance.

🇺🇸🇺🇳🇵🇸Learn more about the Board of Peace in the latest Wyoming Star piece with Dr. Jeffrey Sachs, @moustafabayoumi.bsky.social, @natashahall.bsky.social, @richardgowan1.bsky.social, @peterbeinart.bsky.social, and @tparsi.bsky.social wyomingstarnews.org/2026/02/11/e... #USA #BoP #politics #analytics

Coming soon | New @crisisgroup.org briefing 🔽

Richard Atwood speaks with Crisis Group experts Richard Gowan, Olga Oliker and Steve Pomper about US President Donald Trump’s new Board of Peace and whether the transatlantic crisis over Greenland is over

In Syria, following impressive international successes and the recent reunification of the country, time has come for a more inclusive political transition to secure and consolidate the gains achieved @crisisgroup.org @foreignaffairs.com www.foreignaffairs.com/guest-pass/r...

I talked to @abcaustralia.bsky.social about the UN's funding woes. www.abc.net.au/listen/progr...

"I don’t really think this is a credible international institution that will have the capacities of the UN, but I do think that it is a very worrying signal for the UN." I talk to @imogenfoulkes.bsky.social about the Board of Peace. www.swissinfo.ch/eng/internat...

I argued last year that Trump's (very old school) idea of "peace" would clash with many peace experts' ideas about the term, which I think helps explain @ablum.bsky.social's cognitive dissonance. sdg-action.org/conflicting-...

US, Myanmar, Libya, Congo and the 38 Other Countries That Owe the UN Money passblue.com/2026/02/03/u...

🇺🇸🇨🇴 “Petro and Trump have each found a perfect sparring partner” On Tuesday’s #Spotlight, @dickinsonbeth.bsky.social breaks down #Petro-#Trump tensions ahead of White House visit.

"I don’t really think this is a credible international institution that will have the capacities of the UN, but I do think that it is a very worrying signal for the UN." I talk to @imogenfoulkes.bsky.social about the Board of Peace. www.swissinfo.ch/eng/internat...

Latest Inside Geneva is out, we take a deep dive into the 'Board of Peace'...and the War Watch report is out, we talk to its author. Thanks to @richardgowan1.bsky.social @crisisgroup.org and Stuart Casey-Maslen of Geneva Academy, @gvagrad.bsky.social podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/t...

“Countries that wanted to sign on to help Gaza saw the board turning into a Trump fan club. That was not appealing.” www.times-standard.com/2026/01/29/b...

As @washingtonpost.com international & local correspondents, we have risked our lives, side by side, because we believe reporting from the ground serves the public good. To choke that engine of brave, committed colleagues would be devastating. If you value our work, tell Jeff Bezos to #SaveThePost.

Bloody communism.

Trump’s Board of Peace is not a harmless vanity project but a threat to international cooperation, argue Richard Gowan and Daniel Forti.

1/2 The countries signing on to the new institution in Davos include some—such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates—that have backed different sides in Sudan’s grim civil war. ~ @fortid.crisisgroup.org foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

Trump’s “Board of Peace” is neither an alternative to the U.N. nor a harmless vanity project but a threat to international cooperation. Its impact will be to deepen the fragmentation of the international system and further damage U.S. interests. Gift 🎁 article👇 foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

My longer read for @ecfr.eu on what Trump's Board of Peace means for Gaza, Europe's quest for strategic autonomy, and the future of the global order: ecfr.eu/article/welc...

Weekend listening from @crisisgroup.org on the Board of Peace (featuring me!) and Greenland. www.crisisgroup.org/pod/united-s...

"Whatever challenges that the Security Council faces, Trump’s Board of Peace will not be able to replace it... rather, its impact will be to deepen the fragmentation of the international system and further damage U.S. interests": @richardgowan1.bsky.social. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

NEW OP-ED | The Board of Discord Donald Trump’s “Board of Peace” is neither an alternative to the UN nor a harmless vanity project but a threat to international cooperation, writes @richardgowan1.bsky.social and @fortid.crisisgroup.org in @foreignpolicy.com. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

INBOX: “Today, the United States withdrew from the World Health Organization…”

The Board of Peace was born today. @fortid.crisisgroup.org and I welcome it into the world @foreignpolicy.com. Sort of. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

The Board of Peace was born today. @fortid.crisisgroup.org and I welcome it into the world @foreignpolicy.com. Sort of. foreignpolicy.com/2026/01/22/t...

On the first War & Peace podcast of 2026, @nathalietocci.bsky.social joins @alissadecarbonnel.bsky.social & me to talk U.S. actions in Venezuela, its threats to Greenland, & what's wrong (& right) with European security responses. Plus, multilateralism, what does it even look like now?

“Gunboat diplomacy is back - with a vengeance. What do you do when international law becomes international niceties?” From Venezuela to Greenland, @comfortero.crisisgroup.org explores the dangerous contours of a new era in discussion at @chathamhouse.org. crisisgroup.org/visual-expla...

🎧 NEW EPISODE | War & Peace We unpack Europe’s response to the U.S. operation in Venezuela, the Trump administration’s aggressive rhetoric over Greenland and the future of transatlantic relations. www.crisisgroup.org/europe-centr...

NEW ANALYST’S NOTEBOOK | Gulf Tensions Spill into Somalia as Mogadishu Severs UAE Ties Omar Mahmood explains the reasons behind Mogadishu’s rupture with Abu Dhabi and its worrying implications for Somalia. www.crisisgroup.org/africa/somal...

“The U.S. seems to be walking away from entities that promote international law, economic development, environmental cooperation and gender rights,” said Richard Gowan, U.N. director for the International Crisis Group.” www.washingtonpost.com/national-sec...

Great thread on the crisis of Conflict Studies in the age of authoritarian conflict management. Worth reading the entire thing.

Important piece from @yguichaoua.bsky.social @wlacher.bsky.social. As someone who is wondering whether she should continue to teach "International conflict management" rename the class "conflict making" or eliminate it, I'd like to offer a friendly critique. 1/11 dissentmagazine.org/article/the-...

NEW COMMENTARY | How the World Sees the U.S. Raid in Venezuela The U.S. operation grabbing President Nicolás Maduro caused disquiet in many capitals around the globe. @crisisgroup.org offers a 360-degree view of the reactions and their implications. www.crisisgroup.org/latin-americ...

Well worth a read.

"If you get some very bland bureaucrat who is inoffensive to everyone but basically just keeps on trying to manage decline, the UN is not going to disappear . . . but it’s going to get more and more marginal to international politics," I tell @theobserveruk.bsky.social observer.co.uk/news/interna...

"If you get some very bland bureaucrat who is inoffensive to everyone but basically just keeps on trying to manage decline, the UN is not going to disappear . . . but it’s going to get more and more marginal to international politics," I tell @theobserveruk.bsky.social observer.co.uk/news/interna...

I joined Olive Burrows and thoughtful fellow-panelists @citizentvkenya.bsky.social to talk about the U.S. and the world after Venezuela. www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_O-...

I joined Olive Burrows and thoughtful fellow-panelists @citizentvkenya.bsky.social to talk about the U.S. and the world after Venezuela. www.youtube.com/watch?v=D_O-...

NEW COMMENTARY | How the World Sees the U.S. Raid in Venezuela The U.S. operation grabbing Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro caused disquiet in many capitals around the globe. Crisis Group experts offer a 360-degree view of the reactions and their implications.

Over the last week I have been working with @crisisgroup.org colleagues to assess the global response to the U.S. raid on Venezuela. You can read our region-by-region summary here 👇 www.crisisgroup.org/latin-americ...

Over the last week I have been working with @crisisgroup.org colleagues to assess the global response to the U.S. raid on Venezuela. You can read our region-by-region summary here 👇 www.crisisgroup.org/latin-americ...

We finally have the long-awaited outcome of the Trump administration review of U.S. participation in international organizations. TL;DR—it's not nearly as bad as it could have been, at least where the UN is concerned. theglobalobservatory.org/2026/01/the-...

How might refugees from Nagorno-Karabakh affect Armenian politics and the peace process with Azerbaijan in months and years to come? In a new @crisisgroup.org commentary, @joshuakucera.bsky.social explores how refugees live today, their concerns, government policy, & what it might mean. 1/2

www.globaldispatches.org/p/anjali-add... this week we talk about, well, my turn briefing the Security Council on selecting a new Secretary General in a weird time; below the fold, we do a close reading of a glossy New Yorker profile on Raphael Grossi, the IAEA chief who's running for the top UN job