The ENOUGH Project to end genocide and crimes against humanity has released a new briefing paper, titled "A Diplomatic Surge for Northern Uganda." The authors, John Prendergast and Adam O'Brien, write, "Dissension, disarray, deaths, and defections within the rebel Lord’s Resistance Army leadership provide a major opportunity for negotiators to pursue—parallel to an expeditious conclusion of the formal negotiations process in Juba—the conclusion of a swift deal with LRA leader Joseph Kony himself...The time to strike—diplomatically—is now." They call for more formalized and regular channels to be opened with Kony to propose security and livelihood packages. At the same time, they call for preparing for a follow-up process in northern Uganda to address long-term issues of resettlement, redevelopment and reconciliation. Read the full brief here.

The Washington Post is reporting that diplomatic posts at the State Department and U.S. embassies worldwide will be cut 10% next year because of heavy staffing demands in Iraq and Afghanistan. In face, even the current U.S. Ambassador to Uganda is currently on Temporary Duty Yonder (TDY) in Iraq. Officials say that the State Department does not have enough people to fill these posts. Yet, the deeper problem is budgetary. The size of the foreign service - about 6,500 diplomats - increased by approximately 300 positions a year between 2001 and 2004, but Congress has since rejected any new funding requests. In a November 26 speech, Defense Secretary Robert Gates called for more money for diplomacy. He notes that "funding for nonmilitary foreign affairs programs...remains disproportionately small relative to what we spend on the military." In fact, the U.S. Department of Defense is 210 times larger than the State Department and USAID combined. David Kilcullen writes that there are more people employed in the army band than the entire foreign service.

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Turning to news about northern Uganda's neighbors, The New York Times is reporting that new clashes between the Congolese army and rebel forces loyal Gen. Laurent Nkunda threaten to plunge the country back into full-scale war. Clashes this year alone have pushed 425,000 people from their homes in the North Kivu province. The roots of this instability are the very same that caused Congo's prior civil war that ended in 2005: spillover ethnic tensions from Rwanda, competition to control resources and widespread weaponization of society. Meanwhile, in more uplifting news, southern Sudan's leading party (SPLM) has agreed to rejoin the government in exchange for the power-sharing government to shift every three months from Khartoum to the southern town of Juba. The parties have expressed hope that the peace agreement is back on track and outstanding disputes would soon be resolved.

Speaking last week about U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice's visit today to the Horn of Africa, Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer said the following in a press briefing. "There are increasing defections from Garamba Park and I think that that's positive. We continue to support the Juba peace process and I think it's critically important especially for bringing reconciliation to Northern Uganda. And so we're watching it very closely. We are very involved, especially Tim Shortley, my special, you know, advisor on conflict prevention, is working this issue intensively and so we're following it. And the UN, again, as I said, very quietly is playing a heroic role in trying to facilitate people leaving who want to leave safely."

Turning to the wider region surrounding northern Uganda (as we do each Wednesday), the biggest news of the week is U.S. Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice's visit today to the region. Meeting with presidents of Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi, Rice called on leaders of the Great Lakes Region to defuse tensions in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Rice listed three areas of agreement between the leaders, including the "rapid strengthening" of security forces in Congo, reiteration of a commitment not to "harbor negative forces" and a recommitment to previous agreements. The talks came as Congo's army fought on Wednesday with a renegade Tutsi general's forces, the latest in a series of battles this week. BBC News reports that the DRC military says it has taken control of the rebel stronghold town of Mushake. Yet, the World Food Programme has been forced to suspend aid to the region because of the fighting, leaving some 300,000 recently displaced people without food.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called today for governments to do “everything within their power” to apprehend LRA leader Joseph Kony and three other LRA commanders indicted by the International Criminal Court (ICC). He was speaking at the UN headquarters in New York at the annual meeting of countries who have ratified the agreement creating the ICC. Read more at The New Vision.

In Kampala, civil society and government officials gathered for the launch of “Beyond Juba,” an initiative to help chart the way for recovery, reintegration and reconciliation in Uganda after the Juba peace talks. The initiative will focus primarily on research and lecture series and workshops that will focus on transitional justice, gender and social issues related to the conflict. It is spearheaded by the Refugee Law Project, Human Rights and Peace Centre and Makerere University. Speaking at the event, Ugandan Internal Affairs Minister Ruhakana Rugunda said the LRA would be removed from Uganda’s terrorist list once it had signed a peace agreement and demobilized. Read more at The New Vision.

President Museveni will meet Congolese President Kabila and the US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on Wednesday to discuss the presence of the LRA rebels in eastern Congo among other issues. Rwandan President Paul Kagame, Burundi leader Jean Pierre Nkurunziza, the African Union and the UN Mission in Congo will also participate in what is referred to as the Tripartite Plus Summit. The Tripartite Plus member countries hope to agree on effective ways of consolidating regional security, and enhancing cooperation. Read more at The New Vision.