How do emerging cyber technologies impact peacekeeping operations and mediation? DiploFoundation will be at the EAPTC2019 to explore the challenges and opportunities.
The 7th Annual Meeting of the European Association of Peace Operations Training Centres (EAPTC) will take place on 16-18 April 2019 in Belgrade, Serbia. The EAPTC will be hosted by the Conflux Center, a politically independent and impartial international organisation, that promotes international co-operation, intercultural dialogue, and mediation as essential tools in addressing the challenges and threats to world peace and security. The 7th annual EAPTC meeting will focus on several topics related to peace-keeping and act as a platform for discussions on how training development can follow the ever-changing demands in peace operations and help overcome the gap between aspiration and reality.
One of the most prominent topics of this year's event is the impact of new technologies – in particular, those that are Internet-related – on peacekeeping operations and mediation. To provide a creative space for exploration, Diplo will organise a CyberLab – a simple, quick, and straightforward simulation of new technologies and emerging concepts – to enable diplomats, trainers, and peacekeeping practitioners to better understand new technologies. The CyberLab will provide them with hands-on experience with cryptocurrencies and blockchain, 3D printing, cyber-attacks, (big) data analytics, and augmented and virtual reality, through ‘guided tours’ provided by experts that understand technological, policy, and diplomatic perspectives. The CyberLab will provoke brainstorming on particular opportunities and challenges of emerging technologies for peacekeeping operations, following the successful model implemented at the OSCE Chairmanship event in Belgrade, the 22nd OSCE Ministerial Council in 2015, and other events.
The panel 'Peacekeeping in the Digital Age: From Online Training to Cyber-Attacks', co-organised by the Conflux Center and Diplo, will focus on various good practices in online learning for diplomats, mediators, and peacekeepers (featuring showcases by UNITAR, Trinity College Dublin, Peace Operations Training Institute, and DiploFoundation), and discuss training needs in the field, available and useful methodologies, cost-effectiveness of various models, and ways to build partnerships among training institutions. The second part of the session will zoom out to look at harnessing emerging technologies, the impact of the online world on democracy and democratic processes, cybersecurity risks, the importance of data-protection for peacekeeping, field operation experiences with new technologies, and the potentials of data analytics, augmented reality, 3D printing, artificial intelligence, and blockchain. Vladimir Radunovic will moderate the panel, while Andrej Skrinjaric, Arvin Kamberi and Ambassador Amr Aljowaily, Ambassador of Egypt to Serbia and a senior lecturer with Diplo, will contribute to the discussions.
Our experts involved
Amb. Amr Aljowaily
Ambassador of Egypt to Serbia
Amb. Amr Aljowaily is Egypt’s Ambassador to Serbia. He is also visiting faculty at UNITAR’s Multilateral Diplomacy Program, adjunct faculty in International Security at the School of Global Public Affairs of the American University in Cairo, and a course lecturer on Multilateral Diplomacy at DiploFoundation. He has held leading positions in multilateral negotiations including Rapporteur of the United Nations’ Special Committee on Peacekeeping in 2015, Coordinator for Peacekeeping of the African Group Experts in NY in 2015, Coordinator for Disarmament of the Arab Group Experts in New York from 2011 to 2015, Vice Chair of the UN Disarmament Commission in 2013, Facilitator for the International Tracing Instrument for the Second Review Conference on the UN Program of Action on Small Arms and Light Weapons in 2012, Vice Chair of the General Assembly's First Committee (on Disarmament and International Security) in 2011, Chair of WTO’s Committee on Information Technology Agreement in 2007, Chair of the Negotiating Group on Market Access the Global System of Trade Preferences in 2007, and was twice Coordinator of the African Group to UNCTAD and the ITU (2003-2005).
Amb. Aljowaily’s previous diplomatic postings are New York, Geneva, and Washington, DC. At the Foreign Ministry, he served as Deputy Assistant Foreign Minister for United Nations Affairs, Egypt; Director of UN Affairs; member of the Cabinets of the Minister and First Undersecretary and the departments of multilateral political and economic issues. He was a member of the Egyptian delegations to summits and ministerial meetings of WSIS, the South Summit, the League of Arab States, the African Union, as well as UNCTADXI and the ITU Plenipotentiary 2006. He was Board Member of the Institute for Diplomatic Studies (1994–1996) and Coordinator of International Relations at the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology (2001–2003).
His career began in print and broadcast journalism, and in research centres. He published some of the earliest analytical works in Arabic on ICTs and International Relations, and continues to publish in the field of multilateral diplomacy, especially on issues related to international peace and security. His latest publication is the edited book Serbia in Egyptian Eyes: Diplomatic Memories and Cultural Memoirs, released 17 January 2018.
Amb. Aljowaily holds a BA in Political Science and an MA in Middle East Studies from the American University in Cairo (AUC), an MSc in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), and a Postgraduate Diploma in Contemporary Diplomacy from the University of Malta. He has participated in numerous executive training activities, including the select Missions Leaders’ Course of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
Mr Arvin Kamberi
Multimedia Coordinator
An expert in remote participation, Mr Arvin Kamberi heads up Diplo’s Webinar Team. Based in Belgrade, he has been working on webinars and other web-based remote participation since 2011. Arvin has been part of the remote participation team for many international forums, such as the IGF, EuroDIG, and local IGF events such as IGF Africa. From 2014 to 2015, he was a part of the IGF Working Group on Remote Participation (established in 2008), and involved in the elaboration of IGF remote participation guidelines.
Arvin has a keen interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain developments; first as an avid ‘miner’, then more in terms of regulation and consensus mechanisms surrounding the decentralised systems. His primary focus is on Bitcoin development, but he follows other cryptocurrency developments and the blockchain/distributed ledger technology, too. Vice President of Bitcoin Association of Serbia, Arvin writes extensively about Bitcoin and blockchains. He holds an MA in Film and Video Production from Belgrade University of Art.
Mr Vladimir Radunović
Cybersecurity and E-diplomacy Programmes Director
Serbian-born Mr Vladimir (Vlada) Radunović is a lecturer in cybersecurity policy, Internet governance, and e-diplomacy on postgraduate and professional courses. He also serves as a member of the Advisory Board of the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise (GFCE) and as an expert with the Geneva Internet Platform. He served as a member of the Multistakeholder Advisory Group of the UN Internet Governance Forum (IGF) from 2012 to 2014. Vlada has been a lecturer, speaker, and resource person on a number of educational and training programmes and events worldwide, including within the WSIS and IGF processes. His professional and research focus is on Internet governance, broadband policy and net neutrality, cybersecurity and cyber-diplomacy, e-diplomacy, and capacity development. He holds an MSc in Electrical Engineering from the University of Belgrade and a Master’s in Contemporary Diplomacy from the University of Malta. He is currently working on his PhD in cybersecurity. Vlada is currently member of the Board of Directors of Diplo US.
Mr Andrej Škrinjarić
Online Programmes Coordinator
Belgrade-based Mr Andrej Škrinjarić was born in Karlovac, Croatia. He studied Chinese Language and Literature at the Faculty of Philology, University of Belgrade, graduating in 1999. In 2003, he obtained his Postgraduate Diploma in Diplomacy from the University of Malta with a dissertation entitled ‘Multilingualism and the Internet’. From 1999 to 2009, Andrej worked as a freelance interpreter/translator for Chinese-Serbian-English, and spent six years living in China.