The Courage to Welcome : Between principles and pragmatism in international affairs

Filippo Grandi reflects on a decade as UN High Commissioner for Refugees, exploring the right to asylum in a divided world. Alongside Catherine Ashton, he advocates for international cooperation and a pragmatic, principled approach to displacement.

What does it mean to lead with compassion in a world riven by fear, at a time when the responses to forced displacement hold the power to reshape communities? How can institutions and individuals sustain solidarity amid rising division?This moving reflection of Filippo Grandi’s ten years as UN High Commissioner for Refugees and four decades spent working in humanitarian crises across the world addresses the growing complexity of forced displacement, its repercussions for international relations, and the challenges it poses for governments. Grandi calls for greater cooperation between nations and considers measures – along displacement routes and in host countries – which would provide life-saving assistance to refugees as well as preserve international cooperation and goodwill. He suggests a universal responsibility not to exacerbate division but to work diligently on the space between pragmatism and principle. Taking up this challenge, Catherine Ashton’s response to Grandi draws on her own distinguished leadership during some of the most important moments that have shaped contemporary diplomacy, and suggests how enduring principles can be retained within the realities of public life.