About the author(s):
Promoting information sharing and community building between individuals and organisations working on issues related to armed groups and international law. Providing updates on news stories and publicize academic journal articles and seminars, talks and conferences on issues related to armed groups.
Editors: Dr. Jelena Aparac (Geneva School of Diplomacy) and Anki Sjöberg (Fight for Humanity)
Armed Groups and International Law Blog, together with The Geneva School of Diplomacy and International Relations (GSD) and Fight for Humanity are pleased to announce a blog symposium on “Diplomacy and Non-State Armed Actors: Negotiating in a Fragmented World.”
Contemporary conflicts increasingly involve non-State armed actors that challenge traditional understandings of diplomacy, international relations and international law. Governments and international organisations may be required to communicate or negotiate with non-State armed actors that they do not recognise as legitimate political actors and, in some cases, have formally designated as terrorist organisations.
At the same time, non-State armed actors themselves increasingly develop political structures, external relations, negotiation teams and representatives capable of engaging with States, international organisations and other actors. This raises a broader question: what does diplomacy look like when the State is no longer the only significant diplomatic actor?
This blog symposium seeks to complement existing legal debates by focusing on the diplomatic and practical dimensions of engagement with non-State armed actors.
We invite contributions from diplomats and former diplomats, international lawyers, scholars, mediators, humanitarian and peacebuilding practitioners, international organisation officials, and other experts, as well as contributions from students, emerging scholars and former or current members of non-State armed actors.
Contributors are invited to explore one specific question or problem. The following themes are intended as suggestions rather than an exhaustive list.
Diplomats and the challenge of negotiating with non-State armed actors
- How do diplomats negotiate with an actor they do not recognise?
- Can States engage with non-State armed actors without conferring political legitimacy upon them?
- What are the diplomatic challenges of negotiating with designated terrorist organisations?
- When does a non-State armed actor move from being a military adversary (or proxy) to a negotiating partner?
- What role can back-channel diplomacy play in conflicts involving non-State armed actors?
- Who should speak for the State when negotiations involve non-State armed actors – the diplomat, the military, intelligence services, or political leadership?
How and when do non-State armed actors undertake diplomacy?
- One of the symposium’s central questions is whether non-State armed actors themselves develop a form of diplomatic capacity.
- Do non-State armed actors need diplomats?
- What does everyday diplomacy of non-State armed actors look like? When, why and how do they develop it?
- Can a non-State armed actor develop something resembling a foreign policy?
- How do non-State armed actors develop political representatives and negotiation teams?
- How can a non-State armed actor prepare itself for peace talks?
- What skills are required to move from military confrontation to political negotiation?
- Who represents a non-State armed actor at the negotiating table?
- What happens when military commanders become negotiators?
- How do internal divisions and splinter groups affect a non-State armed actor’s ability to negotiate?
Law, legitimacy and diplomacy
- What does international law permit, and restrict, when States engage with non-State armed actors?
- Does diplomatic engagement amount to recognition?
- What is the relationship between legal status and political legitimacy?
- How does the classification of a conflict affect diplomatic engagement?
- Can humanitarian engagement become political engagement?
- Can States simultaneously impose sanctions on a non-State armed actor and negotiate with it?
- What are the legal and diplomatic challenges posed by engagement with terrorist-designated groups?
Mediators and intermediaries
- Who can talk to non-State armed actors when States cannot?
- What role do mediators play in establishing communication channels?
- How should mediators balance neutrality, legitimacy and accountability?
- What makes an intermediary trusted by a non-State armed actor?
- Are local mediators sometimes more effective than international mediators?
- What can failed negotiations teach us about engaging non-State armed actors?
The future of diplomacy
- Is diplomacy becoming less State-centric?
- Can peace processes succeed without engaging non-State armed actors?
- How does the fragmentation of non-State armed actors affect negotiation?
- Do we need new diplomatic approaches for engaging non-State armed actors?
- How might emerging technologies and new forms of warfare affect negotiations?
- What happens after non-State armed actors enter political processes or sign peace agreements?
A conversation across law, diplomacy and practice
The symposium seeks to bring different communities into conversation. An international lawyer may approach a non-State armed actor through the questions of status and legal classification. A diplomat may approach the same group through questions of communication, legitimacy and negotiation. A mediator may see it primarily through the challenge of building trust and bringing parties to the table.
We particularly encourage contributions that bridge disciplines and perspectives. We are interested not only in what international law says about non-State armed actors, but also in how diplomacy, negotiation and international practice operate in situations where legal categories and political realities do not always neatly align.
We welcome contributions that challenge conventional assumptions, bring practical experience into academic debates, and explore what the changing role of non-State armed actors means for the future of diplomacy.
Expressions of interest and proposed topics are welcome.
Submission guidelines
We warmly invite contributions to our upcoming blog series and look forward to receiving your proposed title and abstract (maximum 300 words) by 15 October 2026.
Following editorial review, selected proposals will be invited to develop their ideas into a full blog post.
We encourage contributions that offer fresh perspectives, engage with current debates, and present original insights in an accessible and thought-provoking way.
Submissions should be sent by email to the following address: armedgroupsblog@gmail.com
For more information on the submission guidelines, please see here.