Weblinks   CAIN Web Service http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/index.html The Conflict Archive on the Internet (CAIN) is a joint project of three educational institutions in the United Kingdom (the University of Ulster, the Queen’s University of Belfast, and the Linen Hall Library) that seeks to provide information on the ongoing conflict in Northern Ireland, historically known as "the Troubles." There are links to descriptions of the key events and issues of this long-term conflict and background on society in Northern Ireland. The site also includes full-length articles and lectures on the conflict that would be good sources for a research paper. Dreams of Tibet http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/tibet/ PBS Online offers this very educational Web site devoted to issues surrounding Tibet and its quest for independence. View the chronology of Tibet’s history starting in the year 600. Then read background about Tibetan Buddhism and find out who the Dalai Lama is. Review over ten interviews, including those with Jamyang Norbu, a Tibetan author in exile; actor Richard Gere, who is a "free Tibet" activist; and Martin Scorsese, who directed the movie Kundun, based on the biography of the Dalai Lama. The site includes excerpts from media articles and reports on the tenuous relationship between Tibet and the Chinese government. You can share your own thoughts in a discussion forum. INCORE http://www.incore.ulst.ac.uk/cds/countries/ index.html The University of Ulster has developed an Internet Guide for the Initiative on Conflict Resolution and Ethnicity that allows you to examine the most recent international conflicts and nationalist movements in detail. Clearly arranged by geographic location, this site offers information about conflicts around the globe. Read about the Kurds’ quest for their own state and the conflict between Israel and Palestinians. There are links to research sources, news sources, maps, nongovernmental organizations, and e-mail lists and newsgroups. You can also gather information according to theme. Want to know how war affects children? Visit the Children and Conflict link. Institute for War and Peace Reporting http://www.iwpr.net Students of international relations often have a hard time getting up-to-date information from conflict areas that is not heavily censored by government agencies. The main goal of the Institute for War and Peace Reporting (IWPR) is to bring unbiased information on international conflicts to Internet users. An independent media resource, IWPR informs readers on international conflicts and supports media development in war-torn areas. Special reports provide in-depth analysis of conflict, media, and human rights issues in regions across the globe. Read reports from trouble spots as events unfold. There is also an extensive list of Internet links for those who want more information on the conflicts. International Crisis Group http://www.intl-crisis-group.org/ The International Crisis Group (ICG) is a private, multinational organization dedicated to understanding and responding to international crises. The organization’s analysts conduct field research and prepare reports about ongoing conflicts that are used to make recommendations to states’ decisionmakers. Currently, ICG has projects in Africa, the Balkans, Southeast Asia, and the Middle East. Students who are interested in these regional conflicts will find useful overviews of specific countries, reports on developments, and maps. War, Peace, Security Guide. http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca/foreign_policy/global_issues-en.asp The Canadian Forces College has created an information resource center on war and peace at this Web site. Links to armed forces, peace and disarmament sites, and military information are available. Visit the section on world conflicts. Choose two contemporary conflicts to explore. Who are the main combatants? What are the main issues? Can you identify any similarities between the two conflicts? Do you have any suggestions for resolution to the conflict? Are other international actors a help or a hindrance to the conflict? Arms Sales Monitoring Project http://www.fas.org/asmp/ Concerned with the global production and trade of weapons, the Federation of American Scientists is monitoring arms transfers and making data available to the public through this Web site. Click on Facts & Figures. Which country is the biggest recipient of U.S. arms sales? See what was sold to whom and for how much. Why do you think that certain countries got freebies? The Henry L. Stimson Center http://www.stimson.org/index.html The Henry L. Stimson Center is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research center that concentrates on the intersection of national and international security policy and technology. It provides information on chemical and biological weapons, nuclear proliferation, and missile defense systems. It houses important international agreements and searches for ways to eliminate weapons of mass destruction. An excellent site for timely information. International Code of Conduct on Arms Transfers http://www.basicint.org/WT/wtindex.htm The British American Security Information Council (BASIC) is an independent research organization that analyzes government policies and promotes public awareness of defense, disarmament, military strategy, and nuclear policies. Since the United States and the Great Britain are the suppliers of 80 percent of the world light arms trade, BASIC’s main goal is to petition the United States and Great Britain to create controls for weapons transfers. Visit this Web site to explore arms transfers and learn about initiatives such as Codes of Conduct and Multilateral Arms Control Regimes. National Commission for Economic Conversion and Disarmament http://www.webcom.com/ncecd/ The National Commission for Economic Conversion and Disarmament is a nonprofit public organization dedicated to public education on the need to and ways to transfer military resources to civilian use. This Web site gives information on the costs associated with arms manufacturing and how monies can be better spent in other ways. What are some of the important arguments made in articles found on the site? What has been Washington’s view toward economic conversion and disarmament? SIPRI Military Expenditure Country Graphs http://databases.sipri.se/ The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) monitors trends in military expenditures throughout the world. Its Web site lets you compare military expenditures and evaluate the economic burdens they pose. Choose a country from the Middle East, Far East, and Africa. How does their military spending compare to that of European countries? What conclusions can you draw? A-Bomb WWW Museum http://www.csi.ad.jp/ABOMB/index.html Visit this Japanese Web site for eyewitness accounts of the impact the first atomic bomb had on Hiroshima. The site includes pictures from the Peace Memorial Museum in Hiroshima that show the effect of the bombing and stories from survivors, many of them deeply disturbing. The A-Bomb WWW Museum was created as a perpetual reminder of the horrors of atomic bombing. It welcomes e-mail responses from all around the world. Atomic Bomb: Decision http://www.peak.org/~danneng/decision/decision.html This Web site houses the available documents on the decision to use atomic bombs on the cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Scan eyewitness accounts of the Trinity Test. Read what the individuals responsible for creating the bomb and for deciding to drop it had to say. See the official bombing order and hear an excerpt of President Truman’s radio speech announcing the decision. Based on what you have read and heard, do you think the United States should have dropped the bomb? Fourth Freedom Forum http://www.fourthfreedom.org/ Are economic sanctions a useful tool in statecraft? Visit the Fourth Freedom Forum’s Web site to get a pro-sanctions point of view. The Fourth Freedom Forum works toward "a more civilized world based on the force of law rather than the law of force." It contends that the effective use of economic incentives and sanctions offers the greatest hope for creating a more secure and peaceful future. From the homepage, click on Sanctions and Incentives. Here you will find an extensive collection of articles related to international sanctions and case studies. Do you think sanctions are effective? Under what circumstances should they be used? Missile Threats & Responses http://www.cdiss.org/tempor1.htm Want to know the difference between ballistic, cruise, biological, chemical, or radiological missiles? How effective are missile defense systems? Do you want to join a forum to discuss issues relating to weapons of mass destruction (WMD)? Visit the site of the Center for Defence and International Security Studies at Cartmel College in Great Britain. It offers an overview of different WMD, raises awareness about the issues, and stimulates debate on a wide range of defense and security matters. Remembering Nagasaki http://www.exploratorium.edu/nagasaki/index.html A stunning Web site, Remembering Nagasaki presents the photographs of Japanese army photographer Yosuke Yamhata, who took pictures the day after the bomb was dropped. A public forum on issues related to the atomic age includes memories from people all over the world of the moment when they heard about the explosion of the bomb, discussion of the decision to drop the bomb, the question of how to tell history, and the ethical responsibilities of scientists. This is a truly fascinating site that explores the issues from all sides. Russian Roulette http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/russia/ PBS’s famous Frontline series is on-line with a look at the safety and security of Russia’s nuclear arsenal and the potential for accidental launch or diversion of its nuclear weapons. Take a look at Russia’s nuclear complex. Compare and contrast U.S. and Russian nuclear arsenals and become familiar with nuclear smuggling incidents. Read interviews with policy experts, smugglers, scientists, analysts, and law enforcement agents, and analyze Russian and U.S. articles for further perspective. On the other hand, you may not want to look at this Web site at all. As a Russian proverb states, "The less you know the better you sleep." Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists http://www.bullatomsci.org/ After World War II, many of the scientists responsible for the production of the atomic bomb helped form a movement to control nuclear energy. In 1945, they founded the Bulletin to advocate international control of the means of nuclear production. Still published today, the Bulletin now appears on-line. Current and archived issues are available. While exploring this site, click on the Doomsday Clock to see how international tensions and nuclear developments have brought us alternatively closer to midnight or back from the brink. Read brief or detailed histories of technological and political developments. Scan the Nuclear Notebook to get up-to-date facts and figures on the world’s nuclear arsenals. Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) http://cns.miis.edu/index.htm The Center for Nonproliferation Studies (CNS) at the Monterey Institute of International Relations is the largest nongovernmental organization in the United States devoted exclusively to research and training on nonproliferation issues. At this site you will find articles on featured topics as well as summaries on CNS projects. Its extensive electronic resources are organized according to region of the world, subject (nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons), and publication type. Which countries of the world are active in the production of weapons of mass destruction? Why do you think this is the case? Federation of American Scientists http://www.fas.org/ Students interested in examining international arms control treaties and related issues should visit the Federation of American Scientists’ (FAS) Web site to find a comprehensive archive of nuclear, chemical, and biological arms control agreements. FAS is a privately funded nonprofit policy organization engaged in analysis and advocacy on science, technology, and public policy issues that concern global security. Topics such as arms sales monitoring, chemical and biological arms, space policy, and nuclear nonproliferation and disarmament are covered extensively. NATO http://www.nato.int/ The North Atlantic Treaty Organization’s (NATO) Web site contains information on NATO’s enlargement as well as the Partnership for Peace (PfP) initiative. Click on the Partnerships link to get a list of the countries participating in the PfP. What are some important current activities of NATO? What opinions of NATO and its role are expressed in the latest edition of NATO Review? United Nations Conference on Disarmament http://www.unog.ch/disarm/disarm.htm The UN Conference on Disarmament Web page links to all the major international instruments on disarmament, from the 1949 Geneva Convention through the 1997 antipersonnel landmines convention. Read the texts of some of the most influential international agreements that seek to control or eliminate weapons of mass destruction. United Nations Demining Database http://disarmament.un.org/MineBan.nsf Antipersonnel landmines (APLs) are internationally recognized as an inhumane and counterproductive weapon. In 1997, one hundred countries signed a treaty prohibiting the production of landmines and supporting the removal of those buried in the ground, but enforcing the treaty remains a challenge. This comprehensive site explores the issues involved with demining. Read about specific countries’ problems demining their land and the origins of the mines found within their borders. See how many mines different countries have, the area contaminated, and the number of victims. Which countries have the greatest number of landmines? Why do you think this is so? Who are the biggest suppliers? Carnegie Council on Ethics and International Affairs http://www.cceia.org/ The best inventory of global issues, with Point of View commentary and links to other Web sites dealing with each issue. Human Rights Watch http://www.hrw.org/ Human Rights Watch (HRW) is an independent, nongovernmental organization dedicated to protecting the human rights of people around the world. To this end, the organization investigates and exposes human rights violations and holds abusers accountable. As this chapter notes, the international community has impressively expanded the human rights protection granted under international law. HRW challenges governments to respect these laws. Its Web site houses stories on breaking news concerning human rights around the globe. The site delivers HRW reports on specific countries’ human rights abuses. Which countries have the best and worst human rights records? The International Court of Justice http://www.icj-cij.org/ The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations. Examine the Court’s statute to find out who can bring cases before the court. Then, read the biographies of the court’s fifteen members. Finally, access the Decisions link to examine some of the ICJ’s contentious cases. Which countries have brought the United States to court? What were the ICJ’s rulings in these cases? International Court of Justice Considers Genocide http://oz.uc.edu/thro/genocide/index.html Professor Howard Tolley of the University of Cincinnati has created an interactive Web site on which you can role-play the judge at the International Court of Justice when Bosnia brought charges against Yugoslavia in 1993. You can explore the facts, research the law, and consider opposing arguments, and then make your judgement. How does it compare to the court’s actual decision? International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) http://www.un.org/icty/ Established by the United Nations Security Council in 1993, the ICTY is mandated to prosecute persons responsible for serious violations of international humanitarian law committed on the territory of the former Yugoslavia since 1991. Visit this Web site to see who was indicted for war crimes and what judgment was rendered. What has happened with the case against Slobodan Milosevic, the former Yugoslavian leader? Do you believe that the international community’s ability to punish individuals for war crimes will be a deterrent against future acts of genocide and inhumanity? Multilaterals Project http://fletcher.tufts.edu/multilaterals.html The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy makes available the texts of international multilateral conventions and other instruments. It has a searchable database as well as a list of conventions organized by subject, such as the rules of warfare, the environment, cultural protection, or biodiversity. You can also view the Treaty of Westphalia and the League of Nations covenant. For thorough historical background on a subject, read the documents chronologically. United Nations Peacekeeping Operations http://www.un.org/Depts/dpko/dpko/home.shtml The United Nations has deployed numerous international military and civilian personnel to conflict areas to stop or contain hostilities and supervise the carrying out of peace agreements.. Click on an ongoing mission and read about the profile, background, and facts and figures concerning the mission. Do the same thing for an older mission. Are there any similarities or differences? Universal Declaration of Human Rights http://www.un.org/Overview/rights.html This chapter discusses the development of international human rights protections. Read the document that started it all—the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Did you know that Eleanor Roosevelt, serving as a delegate to the United Nations, chaired the committee that produced this document?