Dr Argyro Kartsonaki is a Research Fellow on the USIP-funded project ‘Learning from Failure: Tackling War Recurrence in Protracted Peace Processes.’ The project investigates and seeks to address the factors that lead to civil war recurrence. Prior to that Argyro was working on the ESRC-funded project ‘Understanding and Managing Intra-State Territorial Contestation: Iraq's Disputed Territories in Comparative Perspective.’

Argyro’s research interests include secession, statebuilding, ethnic conflict, conflict management and international mediation. She has particular area expertise in the Balkans. The topic of her PhD was ‘The Role of International Actors in State Secession and Recognition: the Case of Kosovo.’

Before coming to the University of Birmingham Argyro had worked on research projects focusing on the Cold War and in particular the impact of INF negotiations on Euro-Atlantic relations.