The Edinburgh Conversations: Scotland’s conciliatory role during the Cold War - Alejandro Coghill
The Edinburgh Conversations: Scotland’s conciliatory role during the Cold War
The importance of mediation in the legal context is the source of much discussion on this blog. The advantages offered by mediation make it an excellent form of dispute resolution, even for complex and commercial legal disputes. However, mediation is often not seen as a worthwhile option by parties whose relationships have broken down. Sometimes parties do not wish to reach a compromise with the other side and want to litigate or arbitrate their disputes. When disputes get highly contentious, mediation seemingly loses much of its allure. However, it is not fair, or correct, to say that mediation is not useful in a highly contentious context.
Let’s take a step out of the legal world and consider mediation more broadly. Mediation is not used solely as a mechanism to resolve legal disputes. Mediation is flexible and can be used in a variety of different situations. It is often used to resolve tensions and conflicts. The ongoing conflict in the Middle East provides recent and highly visible examples of this. What many may not know is that mediation played an important role in diminishing the tensions between the United States and The Soviet Union 40 years ago. More unbeknownst still is that Scottish academics played a key role in preventing the escalation of the Cold War. These mediations are now known as ‘The Edinburgh Conversations’.
Led by Professor John Erickson, a renowned expert in Defence Studies, and Michel Westcott, The Edinburgh Conversations took place in the ‘80’s from 1981 to 1988 and involved academics, diplomats and military officials from the UK, the United States and the Soviet Union. These discussions, facilitated by academics from The University of Edinburgh not only allowed the two superpowers to discuss the complex issues of arms control and international security, but also allowed each side to attain an understanding of the others position. One of the key strengths of mediation is the creation of mutual ground, particularly in a highly contentious context. In this case, the mutual ground was the desire to avoid nuclear war. The Edinburgh Conversations promoted the development of trust between the parties and helped to identify the parties’ interests and promote relationships between entrenched opponents with drastically different ideologies. The fact that The Edinburgh Conversations managed to foster relationships between diametrically opposed officials is a testament to the strength of mediation as a means to resolve disputes.
Around the time of the Conversations, the Soviet Union had invaded Afghanistan and the US had carried out an airstrike in Libya. The fact that The Edinburgh Conversations took place in such a complicated context serves as a testament to John Erickson and Michael Westcott’s tireless work. The success of the Edinburgh Conversations can be attributed to various elements, namely the promotion of “open dialogue, continuity of contact, reciprocity of visits, social events and free and frank exchange of ideas”[1]. These are the same components that make mediation stand out as a dispute resolution mechanism. Mediation was successful in ‘thawing’ the tensions between the two global superpowers at the height of the Cold War.
When The Edinburgh Conversations began, the relationship between the West and the Soviet Union was broken. When The Edinburgh Conversations came to an end, the Soviet Union was in its transitional stage and the Cold War was nearing its end. The Edinburgh Conversations meaningfully contributed towards ending the Cold War. Unfortunately, in today’s world, the relationship between the East and West is, once again, fractured. Conflicts in Eastern Europe and the Middle East have created a global sense of tension that is reminiscent of the Cold War. Mediation and dialogue diminished the tension 40 years ago. Mediation and dialogue will be required again to bring stability in today’s world.
Most are familiar with the Cold War and its tensions but not many are aware of the role played by mediation, Scotland and The University of Edinburgh in diminishing the threat of nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union. As a Scottish mediation advocacy group, we are proud that The Edinburgh Conversations helped prevent the escalation of the Cold War. We wish to celebrate and bring attention to the Edinburgh Conversations. The Edinburgh Conversations should be considered by both practitioners and disputing parties. If mediation helped prevent nuclear war, it cannot be ruled out as a means of resolving highly contentious disputes.
Alejandro Coghill, Solicitor, Shepherd and Wedderburn LLP
[1] Alison Campsie, Inside the top secret Edinburgh meetings that helped thaw the Cold War, The Scotsman, 19 August 2024
For further information, please visit:
· Commemorating the conversations that thawed the Cold War | The University of Edinburgh;
· Inside the top secret Edinburgh meetings that helped thaw the Cold War