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Thant Myint-U

@thantmyintu.bsky.social
442 followers 116 following 75 posts

www.thantmyintu.com/peacemaker

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New York Times Opinion @nytopinion.nytimes.com · 31/01/2026
President Trump’s proposal for a “Board of Peace” is not a sudden break from the United Nations, but “the latest chapter in a much longer history of America’s estrangement from its own creation,” Thant Myint-U writes.
nyti.ms
Opinion | Trump’s Board of Peace Is Anything But
America has conveniently forgotten that it once took the world to end conflicts.
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lynnkuok.bsky.social @lynnkuok.bsky.social · 20/06/2026
Can the UN Sec-Gen still act as a firebreak against conflict? Pleased to join the ‘World’s Toughest Job’, with @thantmyintu.bsky.social @nktpnd.bsky.social & Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein @ipinst.bsky.social to discuss. 🎙️ (discussion starts at 12:00): foreignpolicy.com/podcasts/wor... @foreignpolicy.com
foreignpolicy.com
Can the Secretary-General Still Act as a Firebreak on Peace and Security?
Lynn Kuok, Ankit Panda, and Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein discuss.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 17/06/2026
Really enjoyed my conversation with @tparsi.bsky.social on the past and future of peacemaking @quincyinst.bsky.social
youtube.com
Book Talk | Peacemaker: U Thant and the Forgotten Quest for a Just World
YouTube video by Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Ordinary people have long been gaslit into believing the only future possible is one dominated by ever more potent weapons & great-power rivalries. Today's fluid moment is an opportunity, not to rescue a collapsing liberal international order, but refortify the crumbling taboos against war & empire
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Himal Southasian @himalsouthasian.bsky.social · 02/06/2026
Thant Myint-U’s new book on his grandfather, the first non-white secretary-general of the UN, revisits an era when the institution inspired expectations of internationalist diplomatic leadership that have since faded away. Read Maximillian Morch's review essay for Himal: ow.ly/36Uh50Z6vgn
ow.ly
Remembering U Thant and the lost promise of the United Nations
Thant Myint-U’s new book on his grandfather, the first non-white secretary-general of the UN, revisits an era when the institution inspired expectations of internationalist diplomatic leadership that have since faded away
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Past Present Future Podcast @ppfideas.bsky.social · 18/03/2026
NEW EPISODE OUT NOW! Today we have a live special, co-hosted by the @lrb.co.uk. David was joined by the BBC’s Lyse Doucet, historian Chris Clark and diplomat and writer Thant Myint-U to discuss the fate of democracy in the long run and in the short term. Find us at...🎧 ppfideas.com
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
“Across the world, the desire for a world free of war and empire exists, waiting to be mobilized and given fresh political voice.“ From my essay published this week in @ForeignAffairs. Related podcast link below www.foreignaffairs.com/podcasts/how...
foreignaffairs.com
How to Prevent the Next World War
A Conversation With Thant Myint-U
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/opinion/trump-peace-conflict-united-nations.html
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 05/06/2026
Ordinary people have long been gaslit into believing the only future possible is one dominated by ever more potent weapons & great-power rivalries. Today's fluid moment is an opportunity, not to rescue a collapsing liberal international order, but refortify the crumbling taboos against war & empire
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Blavatnik School of Government @blavatnikschool.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
EVENT: Blavatnik Book Talk: Peacemaker Thant Myint-U will talk about his latest book as well as what the never-before-told story reveals about global politics and the prospects for future peace. 📆 19 Mar, 5:30pm GMT Register ⬇️ ow.ly/RFVF50Yp2s1
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Foreign Affairs @foreignaffairs.com · 21/05/2026
Eight decades of global peace and cooperation are coming to an end, writes Thant Myint-U. “The twin convictions of no war and no empire, the load-bearing walls of the long peace, are fast buckling.”
foreignaffairs.com
The Crumbling Pillars of Global Peace
War, empire, and the forgotten power of the United Nations.
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Foreign Affairs @foreignaffairs.com · 28/05/2026
On the latest episode of “The Foreign Affairs Interview,” Thant Myint-U discusses the past and future of the United Nations—and considers how the pillars of global peace can be reinforced before they collapse. fam.ag/4f8T7K3
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memeorandum @memeorandum.com · 30/01/2026
Trump's Board of Peace Is Anything But (Thant Myint-U/New York Times) Main Link | memeorandum Permalink
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MO*Magazine @mondiaalnieuws.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
‘We zijn vergeten dat je vrede moet organiseren, het volstaat niet om er enkel aan te denken.’ Historicus Thant Myint-U over grootvader U Thant, de vergeten VN-secretaris-generaal. buff.ly/j359uvS
buff.ly
‘We zijn vergeten dat je vrede moet organiseren, het volstaat niet om er enkel aan te denken’ – MO*
Kent u U Thant nog, VN-secretaris-generaal in de jaren '60? Zijn erfenis is erg actueel in geopolitiek spannende tijden.
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Richard Delevan @richard.wickedproblems.earth · 12/03/2026
Thant Myint-U (son of U Thant) made this point at a @lrb.co.uk @ppfideas.bsky.social panel in London last night. Would have been a much poorer panel without his perspective. Hopefully this is coming out as a PPF episode at some point.
Thant Myint-U on a stage in London
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/opinion/trump-peace-conflict-united-nations.html
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William Dalrymple @willdalrymple.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
Thant Myint-U produced my favourite biography this year, Peacemaker: U Thant, the United Nations and the Untold Story of the 1960’s. It is a brilliant portrait not just of a great and unjustly forgotten man, but of an entire age that feels very distant now: an era of optimism and idealism.
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Cheryl Saunders @cherylas1.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
I am half-way through it and enjoying it enormously. What a man, and what a time. Much to be learnt from this book for the present.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 31/01/2026
My guest essay in today’s @nytimes.com www.nytimes.com/2026/01/30/o...
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Arts Matter Bristol @uobartsmatter.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
'He exuded a sense of Buddhist calm and tolerance, yet was at home among the international elite.' Prof @sulinlewis.bsky.social (@uobrishistory.bsky.social) reviews a 'riveting new biography' of U Thant, former Secretary-General of the UN, in a new piece for The TLS www.the-tls.com/history/twen...
the-tls.com
Burmese days
In the same year, 1960, when Nikita Khrushchev famously banged his shoe on the desk at the UN, leaders of the decolonizing world – Castro, Sukarno, Nasser, Nkrumah, Nehru – took turns to lambast the o...
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Trita Parsi @tparsi.bsky.social · 02/10/2025
I had a fantastic conversation with @thantmyintu about his new book about his grandfather. The book - Peacemaker: U Thant and the Forgotten Quest for a Just World - is a fantastic read and reveals the key role U Thant played in resolving the Cuban Missile Crisis. www.youtube.com/watch?v=lYXx...
youtube.com
Book Talk | Peacemaker: U Thant and the Forgotten Quest for a Just World
YouTube video by Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft
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Su Lin Lewis @sulinlewis.bsky.social · 01/12/2025
This was a compelling biography of man at the helm of the UN in the turbulent 60s. Here I tried (in 750 words!) to give more context on the #afroasian world, its engagement with the UN, and Burma's decolonisation. Read it just for U Thant and Kruschev bobbing along together in the Black Sea.
decades.in
decades.in
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The TLS @thetls.bsky.social · 29/11/2025
'Thant gives us a sense of his grandfather’s odyssey as a series of tireless efforts for peace amid the failing promises of a world after empire.' Su Lin Lewis: How U Thant rescued the UN
the-tls.com
Burmese days
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Jasmine Minato Williams @jminato.bsky.social · 16/10/2025
📚Fall Reading List 📖 Peacemaker Thant Myint-U 📖 A Different Kind of Power Jacinda Ardern 📖 107 Days Kamala Harris 📖 Big Bets Rajiv Shah 📖 How to Stand Up To A Dictator Maria Ressa 📖 On Leadership Tony Blair
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William Dalrymple @willdalrymple.bsky.social · 06/11/2025
Peacemaker is a model of biographical thoroughness and insight, beautifully written and artfully shaped, and it tells its extraordinary story with an enviable mixture of writerly skill and scholarly authority.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
Really enjoyed this conversation with @markleongoldberg.bsky.social about my new book Peacemaker (and how a reframing of recent global history - including & perhaps especially the “Cold War” of the long 1960s - might us imagine new ways forward) podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/g...
podcasts.apple.com
A Brilliant New Biography Tells the Story of the Cold War Era UN Secretary General U-Thant
Podcast Episode · Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters · 17/11/2025 · 35m
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Richard Gowan @richardgowan1.bsky.social · 14/11/2025
New from @crisisgroup.org: @fortid.crisisgroup.org, @maxji.bsky.social and I look at #UNSC debates over whether to endorse the U.S. peace plan for #Gaza. www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...
crisisgroup.org
What to Look for as the Gaza Peace Plan Comes to the UN Security Council | International Crisis Group
The United States has proposed a UN Security Council resolution to back President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza. In this Q&A, Crisis Group experts Daniel Forti, Richard Gowan and Max Rodenbeck analyse ...
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The Guardian @theguardian.com · 17/11/2025
Trump Gaza plan: UN security council to vote on resolution to set up international stabilisation force – live
theguardian.com
Trump Gaza plan: UN security council to vote on resolution to set up international stabilisation force – live
US-drafted resolution also includes reference to a future Palestinian state as US president’s plan would include international security force deployment The US-led resolution “endorses” Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, the first phase of which secured the fragile ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in October. In addressing the second phase, the resolution: Authorises the creation of an International Stabilisation Force that would work to secure border areas, protect civilians, facilitate humanitarian assistance, support the training and deployment of a reconstituted Palestinian police force, and de-militarise the Strip (this includes overseeing the permanent de-commissioning of weapons held by Hamas and other armed groups in Gaza) Indicates that Israeli forces fully withdraw once the force has established security and operational control across the territory Approves the creation of a “Board of Peace” - the transitional governing body for Gaza, to be chaired by Trump, which will have an initial mandate to do so for the next two years – to coordinate security, humanitarian and reconstruction planning. This would guide Gaza towards a reformed Palestinian governing authority Mentions a possible future Palestinian state - a last-minute addition following pressure from Arab states. The resolution outlines a pathway towards Palestinian self-determination and eventual statehood, linked to accountable governance and reconstruction milestones. Israel, of course, continues to firmly reject the notion of a Palestinian state Continue reading...
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
Thank you @kajakallas.bsky.social for mentioning my latest book Peacemaker in your ERR interview and discussing U Thant in your @economist.com guest essay this week. economist.com/the-world-ahea….
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David A. Lee @davidalee.bsky.social · 15/11/2025
At long last, a biography on former UN Secretary General U Thant — by his grandson no less — is published. Looking forward to reading.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 17/11/2025
Really enjoyed this conversation with @markleongoldberg.bsky.social about my new book Peacemaker (and how a reframing of recent global history - including & perhaps especially the “Cold War” of the long 1960s - might us imagine new ways forward) podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/g...
podcasts.apple.com
A Brilliant New Biography Tells the Story of the Cold War Era UN Secretary General U-Thant
Podcast Episode · Global Dispatches -- World News That Matters · 17/11/2025 · 35m
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Comfort Ero @comfortero.crisisgroup.org · 15/11/2025
The United States has proposed a UN Security Council resolution to back President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza. In this Q&A, my colleagues @fortid.crisisgroup.org @richardgowan1.bsky.social and @maxji.bsky.social analyse its contents. www.crisisgroup.org/middle-east-...
crisisgroup.org
What to Look for as the Gaza Peace Plan Comes to the UN Security Council | International Crisis Group
The United States has proposed a UN Security Council resolution to back President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza. In this Q&A, Crisis Group experts Daniel Forti, Richard Gowan and Max Rodenbeck analyse ...
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Barry Tucker @btucker.bsky.social · 25/10/2025
Burmese diplomat U Thant (UN Sec-General, 1961-71) ended more wars & conflicts than Donald J. Duc/// Trump ever will -- except in his own imagination. U Thant subject of Sunday Extra on this morning's ABC Radio National.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 13/11/2025
My guest essay in the @economist.com www.economist.com/by-invitatio...
economist.com
As the UN turns 80, Thant Myint-U argues it should be retooled for a less internationalist age
The world body should go back to focusing on its founding principle: preventing war
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History Today @historytoday.com · 21/10/2025
Peacemaker: U Thant, the United Nations and the Untold Story of the 1960s by Thant Myint-U captures the optimism and ambition of Burma’s bridge between worlds. ✍️ John Sidel reviews the recent #historybook www.historytoday.com/archive/revi...
historytoday.com
‘Peacemaker’ by Thant Myint-U review
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
Delighted to discuss my new book Peacemaker and the future of the @UN with @amanpour edition.cnn.com/2025/10/10/tv/…
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 10/11/2025
With many thanks to William Dalrymple @willdalrymple.bsky.social for choosing Peacemaker as a “Book of the Year”. www.spectator.com.au/2025/11/book...
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 03/11/2025
Today in 1961: little-known Burmese diplomat U Thant (just 13 yrs from life as a small town schoolteacher) takes helm of UN at the height of the Cold War. Within a year he would mediate the Cuban Missile Crisis and go on to face more than a dozen wars. Full story in Peacemaker.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Very grateful to Pratap Mehta for this extremely insightful and compelling appraisal of my new book.
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Andrew Mueller @andrewmueller.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Weekday replug for latest Foreign Desk on Monocle Radio. The at 80 UN, with former UN force commander Major General Patrick Cammaert, Mona Ali Khalil of @passblue.bsky.social, U Thant's biographer and grandson @thantmyintu.bsky.social and. . . John Bolton. monocle.com/radio/shows/...
monocle.com
Eighty years on, is the United Nations a relevant institution? - Monocle
Eighty years on from its inception, the United Nations is in crisis. Former US Ambassador to the UN John Bolton...
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 27/10/2025
Very grateful to Pratap Mehta for this extremely insightful and compelling appraisal of my new book.
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
The next U.N. Secretary-General may prove indispensable in preventing another world war. It’s been done before - exactly this week in 1962. But that story - on the front pages everywhere at the time - was quietly dropped down the memory-hole www.ft.com/content/426f...
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NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC) @nyucic.bsky.social · 21/10/2025
📣 Join us + @nyu.edu Wagner for a keynote conversation w/ @thantmyintu.bsky.social—renowned historian & writer—on his new book, Peacemaker. 🇺🇳 The book is about U Thant, his grandfather, who led the UN through a time of great turbulence & uncertainty. ➕ cic.nyu.edu/events/peace...
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History Today @historytoday.com · 21/10/2025
Peacemaker: U Thant, the United Nations and the Untold Story of the 1960s by Thant Myint-U captures the optimism and ambition of Burma’s bridge between worlds. ✍️ John Sidel reviews the recent #history book www.historytoday.com/archive/revi...
historytoday.com
‘Peacemaker’ by Thant Myint-U review
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 20/10/2025
Critical UN successes, preventing & ending wars, especially 1955-1995, long forgotten in service of liberal interventionist agendas. A wilful amnesia. UN@80 this week: need return to first principles, rethink history, and reimagine the future of peacemaking www.economist.com/by-invitatio...
economist.com
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theinswe206.bsky.social @theinswe206.bsky.social · 01/10/2025
Bertil Lintner reviews new books about U Thant, the Burmese schoolmaster who helmed the UN during its heyday, and about Vladimir Putin’s desperate attempts to find support in the East. Read more: bit.ly/46w9WKh
bit.ly
Studies of Diplomacy at Opposite Ends of the Scale
Bertil Lintner reviews new books about U Thant, the Burmese schoolmaster who helmed the UN during its heyday, and about Vladimir Putin’s desperate attempts to find support in the East.
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NigelBankes @nigelb.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
Currently reading the recently released biography of the UN's third secretary general, the Burmese U Thant and reflecting on the dramatically & sadly diminished role of the UN (and specifically the UN SG) in mediating int'l conflicts. #cdnpoli
wwnorton.com
Peacemaker
“A wonderful subject, beautifully written, evoking a world startlingly like and unlike our own. Essential reading for anyone interested in the origins and possibilities of our current global cri...
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NYU Center on International Cooperation (CIC) @nyucic.bsky.social · 14/10/2025
🇺🇳 How can we reimagine the United Nations’s future? 🌐 At our upcoming event with @nyu.edu Wagner, @thantmyintu.bsky.social will share insights on how the #UN can better equip itself to confront today’s global crises from a Global South perspective. RSVP now! cic.nyu.edu/events/peace...
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 13/10/2025
Delighted to discuss my new book Peacemaker and the future of the @UN with @amanpour edition.cnn.com/2025/10/10/tv/…
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Thant Myint-U @thantmyintu.bsky.social · 10/10/2025
Seems that the Nobel peace prize is increasingly de-linked from its original concept - an award to whoever has “done the most or best work for fraternity between nations, for the abolition or reduction of standing armies and for the holding and promotion of peace congresses."
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