Jan Oberg February 19, 2026 What a thrill to be interviewed by former British diplomat Ian Proud! Don’t waste a minute: acquaint yourself with him here on his homepage, which he elegantly calls “Proud Diplomat.” Notice also his book, A Misfit In Moscow. Ian is, of course, also on Substack, where he calls himself The Peace Monger, and recently he set up his own PeaceMonger Channel on YouTube. For once, I was not interviewed as if I were a military geopolitical expert, where I normally have to twist the whole thing in the direction of peace. No, we both had a focus on peace – why it has been disappeared by research, politics and the media, but also what can be done to shape a more peaceful future for us all. One idea we came up with was that of connecting people through citizens diplomacy – in an era where...
4 Responses
I certainly admire your optimism, despite all the negative developments and destructive and genocidal wars that we have been witnessing over the past few years and decades. I also partially share your optimism in the sense that, given the nature of modern warfare and the growing awareness of the people, especially the young generation, everybody will come to realise that we have only two options. Either we decide to blow up the world, including ourselves, or we have to learn to live together in peace in a multipolar world. There is no third option, despite what some people imagine. The age of empire and a global hegemon is over. Certainly, the people in the Global South, which constitute the vast majority of mankind, and increasingly the majority of the people in the West who have seen the futility of the empire and its enormous material, military and moral cost to the entire humanity, will not support the minority of blind, misguided, arrogant and aggressive leaders who wish to revive the age of the empire. Therefore, as you say in the interview, if some madmen do not blow us all up in the short term, the future is rosy and glorious beyond our imagination when the ideals enshrined in the UN Charter will finally be realised.
As usual, dear Farhang, we are on the same line. There are no Plan C or D. Many many thanks. I refuse to be re/depressed by the present situation – because that is where those kakistocrats want us to be – and give up resistance as well as visions. We must learn to think beyond the past and the present and think of the future, debate and plan it… democratically. All my best – JAN
I happened to tune in to CGTN just in time to catch your whole interview, and appreciated it very much. It was full of timely wisdom from beginning to end. Your mailings also contain a lot of valuable material, and I’ve used some of your articles with my English class at a peace school. Thank you for all you have done over the years to educate people for a peaceful world. By the way, my first encounter with you was through your keynote speech at the IIPE in Seoul, years ago.
Dear Marion Kim – thanks a million for your upbeat comment. It’s great to link up again after all these years, and I am of course delighted to hear that my articles can also be used in that manner. Thanks for spreading the message of peace – ours and your own. There is now a link to it if you want to share it with others. https://transnational.live/2024/03/27/the-pursuit-of-global-democracy-global-governance/ All my best – JAN