The thesis aims to investigate international and regional organizations as mediators and how different prerequisites – structural and democratic – affect mediation activities, and as part of this how mediation as a conflict resolution method can be understood?

Mediation is often defined as a form of intervening by third parties in a conflict and is based on voluntaryity, but can also be given other meanings. The method constitutes a multifaceted form of conflict resolution that can performed in several different ways. Common to most theories surrounding the method is that the third party, mediator, has a central role in the process. However, who should mediate and how the mediator should act in the process there are divided opinions about.

The number of international conflicts has been growing at a steady pace for a long time. Mediation is often used as a method of conflict resolution and in many cases mediation activities are run by both international and regional organizations as mediators to reach a solution. Organizations differ in their design in several ways, which in turn can have an impact on the mediation activities and its effectiveness. The petition thus examines whether certain specified conditions within the organization have any impact on its role as mediator and furthermore its mediation activity. Emphasis is placed on structural and democratic prerequisites within the organization and their impact on mediation. To investigate the issue a case study is conducted based on the conflict in Yemen.

The results show that structural and democratic prerequisites can have an impact on the organization and its mediation activities, but clear conclusions are difficult to draw based on the limited scope of the study. The results certainly contribute to a broader understanding and knowledge of mediation as a conflict resolution method and in addition to that raise questions for further research in the field.