Skip to main content
peace initiative

peace initiative

8 3.8
A step that starts talks to end a conflict between countries or groups
  • noun
  • /piːs ɪˈnɪʧətɪv/
translation icon : iniciativa de paz
  • European leaders have praised President's peace initiative.
  • Arab peace initiative

This is a joint US Russian peace initiative.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • A series of peace initiatives have been pursued, but none has succeeded to date.

    Academic text (2009)
  • A second peace initiative was taking place simultaneously with the Hack-Fujimura attempts.

    Academic text (1993)
  • "But the purpose of that trip was to discuss the peace initiative."

    Blog text (21)
  • Any new peace initiative needs to take the question within a broader regional framework if it wants to be more effective.

    Academic text (2017)
  • It's part of the disarmament and peace initiative.

  • In his last year, the weakened president had no clout to develop his peace initiative.

    Academic text (2003)
  • Concurrently, artillery shelling of Jinmen stopped, and a series of further peace initiatives followed.

    Academic text (1991)
  • In the months following his trial, Soyinka campaigned through the Nigerian press for peace initiatives to stem the rising tide of violence in the north.

    Academic text (2008)
  • Therefore, when President George Bush announced a new Arab-Israeli peace initiative in March 1991, most observers viewed his proposal with understandable skepticism.

    Academic text (1994)
  • The United Nations launched a new peace initiative to resolve the ongoing conflict between the two nations.

Synonyms

peacemaking
vspeace initiative
8 3.7

Helping people or groups end a conflict and start good relations

is a single action meant to start negotiations rather than a long process
peacemongering effort
vspeace initiative
7.4

Actions that try to stop fighting and help people agree

is specifically a proposal to begin formal negotiations

Antonyms

A disagreement between ideas, people, or interests

How Serious

peace treaty
  • Formal
31 3.0
peace initiative
8 3.8
proposal
817 2.9
suggestion
759 1.4

Surface Forms

Morphology

peace + initiative

The meaning is directly derivable from combining 'peace' (absence of conflict) with 'initiative' (a plan or action); together they plainly denote an action or proposal aimed at achieving peace. This noun+noun composition is a common, cross-linguistic pattern and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows both constituent words.

Etymology

The phrase peace initiative creates a clear image: someone steps forward with an olive branch to begin ending a fight. So, peace means 'no fighting' and initiative means 'the first action', which is why the phrase means 'an action or proposal to start talks'.