The Peace Treaty Initiative: From Idea to Reality

29 January 2026 – Earlier this month, we sat down with IFIT executive director Mark Freeman to talk about the origins of the Peace Treaty Initiative.

At the heart of this groundbreaking initiative are the Draft Articles of the Convention for the Support, Protection and Acceleration of Conflict Prevention and Resolution: a 21st century peace and security treaty that Freeman began work on nearly ten years ago and that later served as the centrepiece of a years-long global consultation process.

“Until now, the world has lacked a treaty designed to increase the chances of negotiation and mediation success,” Freeman explained. “This new Convention will change that forever, making international law less of a hindrance and more of a help to the cause of peace deals and political settlements.”

As explained in the video, the treaty process has had numerous critical phases and today is being steered toward adoption through a special partnership between IFIT and the Republic of Kenya.

“More than 80 years after the adoption of the UN Charter and the corpus of international law that followed, the world is ready for a refresh and a reset,” Freeman observed. “Helpfully, as the new treaty demonstrates, this can be done by adding valuable new options for peace and security without taking away what already exists.”