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Negotiation is a major catalyst of global dynamics – in resolving conflicts and promoting cooperation. Government policymakers, diplomats, and researchers need to be prepared to use it. They need to understand how the negotiation system works, plan in advance, appreciate the interests and strategies of their opponents, be prepared to make adjustments to their own strategies, and develop practical approaches to implement ultimate agreements. Conducting international negotiations is never an easy process, particularly in the context of today's growing global instability. However, convincing conflicting parties to employ the negotiation path is always the preferred route. This introductory chapter presents a quick outline of the book focusing on the roles played by key negotiation factors and subprocesses.

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The principal elements and subprocesses that make up the negotiation system are introduced and defined. Their contributions to achieving a wide range of peaceful and cooperative agreements are discussed.

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No chapter abstract available.

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A principal influence on how any negotiation process advances is contained in the issues at hand and the history of these issues among the involved parties, their relationships over time, and their current context. Is this a multi-generational conflict or dispute? Have the parties viewed each other as enemies or “the other” over this period? Have there been past attempts to address their problems, or have they exploded into full-out confrontations from time to time? And what is the current context? Have there been recent triggers causing a turning point in the dispute that might motivate the parties to come to the negotiating table? Research shows that conflicts in different issue domains may function differently. These questions are examined in relevant research on international conflicts over shared water resources.

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The principal institutional actors at most international negotiating tables are typically diplomats and representatives of governments, but can also include members of nongovernmental organizations from the involved parties who speak for a range of interest groups in society. Critical to how any of these actors conduct themselves in the negotiation is how they present and seek to achieve their interests – what they really want, what motivates them toward certain outcomes. The culture and gender of the actors, as well as their training and experience, can have important effects on how actors present themselves, their interests, and their focus on effectively achieving favorable outcomes. After an analysis of key factors related to different participating actors, relevant research is presented on particularly unstable actors – non-state groups – who are viewed as terrorists or “villains.” Four examples of negotiations – Israel-PLO, US-Haiti, US-North Korea, and Great Britain-Sinn Fein – are used to draw implications for researchers and practitioners.

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The structure of negotiations can be characterized in terms of the institutional settings within which they are conducted. The negotiation context can have a critical impact on many aspects of the negotiation process and how they play out. The institutional setting can take several forms – bilateral or multilateral talks, the intervention of third-party mediators, and a regional or international organization within which the talks take place. The state of power relations among the actors can also be seen as influencing the structure of negotiation talks by introducing aspects of control, dominance, and capacity into the negotiating dynamics. Relevant research is presented concerning power asymmetry – or the perception of such – among negotiating parties that can impact negotiations and their ability to come to agreement. The case under analysis examines North-South asymmetry in environmental negotiations.

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Strategies are used by all sides to persuade others to come to agreement. Persuasion can take the form of promising benefits or threatening harm, while asking for something in return: a concession. The proposed exercise of power by one party is often a critical factor in convincing other involved parties to agree with a persuasive strategy. At the same time, a show of compassion and empathy by one side toward the other can also persuade compliance. After examining these factors, relevant research is presented on how decision analysis techniques can and have been applied effectively to support practical negotiators in international settings to help them diagnose the situation and develop their own plans and strategies for ongoing negotiations.

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Reaching a negotiated outcome that is acceptable to all parties and that brings peaceful and cooperative conditions is the ultimate goal. Such outcomes are a testament to the history, actors, structure, and strategies employed in the negotiation; successful agreements usually happen when these factors are applied effectively throughout the sequential negotiation processes. The outcome might be integrative – providing all parties with a sense that they have achieved some of their goals and values – or distributive – where some parties see themselves as winners and the others as losers. Relevant research is presented that examines how negotiated outcomes can best be implemented when not only the government is in charge of implementation, but when civil society stakeholders are brought into the picture as well to continue negotiations and sustain implementation.

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This chapter summarizes and expands on our examination of many of the principal dynamic elements that define international negotiation – the issues, actors, structures, strategies, and outcomes. We examine how these factors operate, what makes them effective, and why, from time to time, they fail to achieve their goals.

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No chapter abstract available.

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Before negotiations can even begin, conflicting parties must agree to participate in an essential and fundamental process – prenegotiation. They must decide that they want to go to the bargaining table to discuss their differences and seek a peaceful conclusion with their opponent. This is not always an easy decision. This subprocess is examined analytically. Relevant research is presented that focuses on the key factors that influence parties to decide to negotiate: their motivation to come to the table, as well as their negotiating capacity – their past experience, training and skills.

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After conflicting parties agree to negotiate and prepare for their discussions, the really hard and most detailed phase in the process begins – negotiating at the table face-to-face. This is where and when the principal interests of the parties are presented to each other, and persuasion and power strategies are applied, seeking compromises and concessions from all sides to enable an agreement to be reached. After an analytical examination of this subprocess, relevant research is presented describing a simulation experiment that examines a critical moment at the negotiation table: when parties have reached a stalemate as to how to resolve their underlying conflict. Their strategies have not yielded the compromises from the other side that they had anticipated and they need new and different ideas – creative ideas – to reframe the problem being negotiated to keep the negotiations alive.

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There is no purpose in conducting negotiations and reaching agreement if the parties are not ready, capable, and reliably committed to following through on implementing its provisions. Handshakes among diplomats are not enough. The parties must possess the political will, commitment, and resources to execute the agreement, as well as the appropriate training and finances to do it properly. Implementation of the agreement's provisions is best if the parties negotiate such planning and adopt it as part of the initial outcome. With such a negotiated implementation plan in place, the parties just need to do it. Six recent cases of peace negotiations and their implementation are analyzed to yield lessons and recommendations for diplomatic and international development analysts and practitioners.

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Most negotiated agreements, especially those ending violent conflicts between countries, do not last forever. As the context changes over time, there is often a need to reconsider and adjust the provisions of such agreements and how they are implemented, or in more extreme conditions, to totally revise the agreement. If such a situation emerges, post-agreement negotiations or renegotiations may be called for. The dynamics of this subprocess are examined, followed by relevant research that addresses when and why renegotiations may be needed, and what are the best tactics and strategies to ensure that they succeed for the mutual benefit of all stakeholders. Cases analyzed include those related to the European Union, US-Mexico-Canada trade, and the Iran nuclear agreement.

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This chapter examines and expands upon how the negotiation elements discussed in Part I of this book operate within the four basic subprocesses of international negotiation – getting to the table, conducting negotiations, developing implementation plans as part of the negotiated agreement, and continuing negotiations in the post-agreement period.

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No chapter abstract available.

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In a world that is moving from a rules-based international order to one that is more multipolar, confrontational, and uncertain, international negotiation processes must adapt to the changing context. Negotiators must navigate and adjust in an environment that can be disrupted by changing power dynamics, emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence, global pandemics, increasing inequalities, illiberal regimes, and climate change, to name just a few. Within this volatile context, international negotiation faces many obstacles, including what some call a “gathering global disorder.” This chapter examines the impacts of the current global disorder in the context of the Israel-Gaza conflict and the ongoing implementation of the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC).

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Negotiations advance through a fairly complex set of factors and processes. One negotiation is never exactly like another; each one is heavily influenced by specific contextual and personal aspects. But that does not mean that negotiation researchers or practitioners cannot learn from past cases about how to best achieve their objectives at the table and afterwards. Detailed and targeted examination of past negotiations can help researchers better understand how the process works toward effective solutions, and can provide practitioners with better ideas and tools for planning and executing their future negotiation encounters. Suggestions for future investigations are discussed here.