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It has become clear that preventive diplomacy is only one
of a class of actions that can be taken to prevent disputes from
turning into armed conflict. Others in this class are preventive
deployment of military and(or) police personnel; preventive
humanitarian action, for example, to manage and resolve a
refugee situation in a sensitive frontier area; and preventive
peace-building, which itself comprises an extensive menu of
possible actions in the political, economic and social fields,
applicable especially to possible internal conflicts.
All these preventive actions share the following
characteristics: they all depend on early warning that the risk of
conflict exists; they require information about the causes and
likely nature of the potential conflict so that the appropriate
preventive action can be identified; and they require the consent
of the party or parties within whose jurisdiction the preventive
action is to take place.

The element of timing is crucial. The potential conflict
should be ripe for the preventive action proposed. Timing is also
an important consideration in peace-making and peace-keeping.
The prevention, control and resolution of a conflict is like the
prevention, control and cure of a disease. If treatment is
prescribed at the wrong moment in the evolution of a disease, the
patient does not improve, and the credibility of both the treatment
and the physician who prescribed it is compromised.

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