{"id":2054,"date":"2024-07-15T14:52:58","date_gmt":"2024-07-15T18:52:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/?p=2054"},"modified":"2024-07-24T13:50:44","modified_gmt":"2024-07-24T17:50:44","slug":"hostage-negotiator-mickey-bergman-discusses-new-book-at-stimson-center","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/15\/hostage-negotiator-mickey-bergman-discusses-new-book-at-stimson-center\/","title":{"rendered":"HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR MICKEY BERGMAN DISCUSSES NEW BOOK AT STIMSON CENTER"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bergman\u2019s Book In The Shadow<\/em>s Provides Key Insight On Freeing Americans Detained Abroad<\/p>\n

By Kaila Hall<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

On July 11, hostage negotiator Mickey Bergman discussed1<\/sup> his new book, In the Shadows: True Stories of High-Stakes Negotiations to Free Americans Captured Abroad<\/em>,2<\/sup> at the Stimson Center. Released in June 2024, In the Shadows<\/em> details Bergman\u2019s accounts of high-profile negotiations, including Brittney Griner, Danny Fenster, Otto Warmbier, Trevor Reed, and countless others. The event was moderated by Stimson Center President and Chief Executive Officer Brian Finlay.<\/p>\n

Michael \u201cMickey\u201d Bergman serves as the Vice President and Executive Director of the Richardson Center for Global Engagement, where he manages efforts to negotiate the release of political prisoners.3<\/sup> Named after U.S. Ambassador Bill Richardson, the Center advocates for global peace and dialogue. Bergman has over 18 years of experience in \u201cFringe Diplomacy, a discipline exploring the space just beyond the boundaries of States and Governments\u2019 capacity and authority in international relations.\u201d5<\/sup> The Richardson Center works solely on behalf of the families of Americans captured abroad at no cost.<\/p>\n

At the Stimson Center, Bergman began by discussing the negotiation process to release American journalist Danny Fenster who was detained at the Yangon International Airport in Myanmar following the 2021 military coup. During the coup d\u2019\u00e9tat, the Tatmadaw military deposed Myanmar\u2019s State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, and installed Senior General Min Aung Hlaing into power. Fenster previously worked for a legal publication before the coup and consequently remained in custody for six months. At the request of Fenster\u2019s family, the Richardson Center team initiated the negotiation process and secretly secured a deal by creating a personal friendship with Myanmar\u2019s leader. Following an expedited trial and sentencing, Fenster was released and flown first to Qatar, then the US.<\/p>\n

Afterward, Bergman addressed criticism that hostage negotiations could incentivize foreign regimes to hold more Americans hostage in the future to receive something in return from the US. While Bergman certainly understood the critique, he found it \u201cintellectually lazy\u201d and \u201cmorally bankrupt\u201d because avoiding release deals would essentially build a \u201cdeterrence policy on the backs of innocent captured Americans.\u201d He stated, \u201cWe need to do everything we can to bring them home and it\u2019s our responsibility once they’re home to come up with the deterrence policies that can actually help mitigate this issue going into the future.\u201d He also added that there is no statistical correlation between the release deals and more Americans being detained afterward.<\/p>\n

Throughout his experience, Bergman stated he has identified two cardinal truths: hostage deals never improve over time, and that time is detrimental to the health of hostages. He has also devised the theory of return in which the team develops a uniquely tailored strategy to ensure the most efficient pathway toward the release of captured Americans.<\/p>\n

On the question of deterrence, Mickey Bergman explained that his job was to bring captured Americans home rather than to deter countries from taking more hostages. He noted that the repeat offenders of \u201chostage diplomacy\u201d are often the most sanctioned by the US. Under these terms, \u201chostage diplomacy\u201d becomes a mode of communication for these states. Bergman suggested that Red Notices on hostage-holders could be beneficial but risky in terms of deterrence. Additionally, he pointed to forms of positive deterrence in which a bilateral agreement accompanies the release of a hostage.<\/p>\n

Bergman also touched upon efforts to release hostages held in Gaza by Hamas following the October 7, 2023, attacks in Israel. In the first 54 days, Bergman stated that his theory of return successfully released 109 hostages, but has struggled to produce results in the months since. He particularly emphasized unsuccessful efforts to convince Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept a ceasefire deal to release the remaining hostages. Bergman suggested that, to Netanyahu, as long as there are hostages, Israel\u2019s war is justified, and no elections will be held as a result. The hostage negotiator believes that if President Biden can secure a humanitarian deal to release the Israeli-American hostages, this will provide leverage to convince Netanyahu to accept the deal.<\/p>\n

In 2019 and 2023, Mickey Bergman was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize for his hostage negotiations alongside Ambassador Richardson. Following Ambassador Richardson\u2019s passing in September 2023, Bergman became the CEO of Global Reach, an organization dedicated to bringing home wrongfully detained Americans abroad whether by terrorist groups, criminal gangs, or foreign governments.6<\/sup><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Kaila Hall is an intern at IELR. She is a rising senior at Cornell University.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

[1] The Stimson Center\u2019s conversation with Mickey Bergman may be viewed here: https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=WzBOwQYPgZo<\/a><\/p>\n

[2] Mickey Bergman\u2019s book In the Shadows<\/em> may be purchased here: https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Shadows-High-Stakes-Negotiations-Americans-Captured\/dp\/1546004750<\/a><\/p>\n

[3] Staff | the Richardson Center<\/em>. 2 July 2015, www.richardsondiplomacy.org\/staff-members\/.<\/p>\n

[4] \u200cOur Mission | the Richardson Center<\/em>. 29 June 2015, www.richardsondiplomacy.org\/about-us\/.<\/p>\n

[5] \u200cStaff | the Richardson Center<\/em>. 2 July 2015, www.richardsondiplomacy.org\/staff-members\/.<\/p>\n

[6] \u201cGlobal Reach.\u201d Www.reach.global<\/em>, www.reach.global.\u200c<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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Released in June 2024, In the Shadows details Bergman\u2019s accounts […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-2054","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-uncategorized","7":"entry"},"yoast_head":"\nHOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR MICKEY BERGMAN DISCUSSES NEW BOOK AT STIMSON CENTER | IELR Blog<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ielrblog.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/15\/hostage-negotiator-mickey-bergman-discusses-new-book-at-stimson-center\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"HOSTAGE NEGOTIATOR MICKEY BERGMAN DISCUSSES NEW BOOK AT STIMSON CENTER | IELR Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Bergman\u2019s Book In The Shadows Provides Key Insight On Freeing Americans Detained Abroad By Kaila Hall   On July 11, hostage negotiator Mickey Bergman discussed1 his new book, In the Shadows: True Stories of High-Stakes Negotiations to Free Americans Captured Abroad,2 at the Stimson Center. 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