UN peacekeeping operations around the world today illustrate the wide range of mechanisms, strategies and resources that the United Nations marshals in support of peace and security.
Over the past two decades, UN peacekeepers have deployed into increasingly difficult and complex environments. Armed conflicts are becoming more intractable. They are compounded by a confluence of new security threats and challenges such as the weaponisation of technology, the climate crisis, displacement of populations, and proliferation and fragmentation of non-state armed groups. These factors pose ever greater hurdles to ending violence and achieving sustainable peace.
These multifaceted threats, amplified by mis- and disinformation directed against the UN in some settings, has caused a rise in attacks against peacekeepers. Missions have sometimes lacked the personnel and equipment to meet these threats. Peacekeeping operations have also faced challenges in delivering on protection mandates and in contributing to long-term, sustainable peace, and in achieving coherence with other actors operating in the same contexts. In order to remain relevant amid this evolving landscape, a number of actions are being taken by the UN in partnership with Member States to reform peacekeeping so that it can remain fit for purpose and meet today’s challenges.
Action for Peacekeeping (A4P) and Action for Peacekeeping + (A4P+)
To respond to these challenges, in 2018 the Secretary-General launched Action for Peacekeeping (A4P), aiming to renew mutual political commitment to peacekeeping operations. The Secretary-General called on Member States to support the development of a set of mutually agreed principles and commitments to create peacekeeping operations fit for the future. The A4P initiative aims to refocus peacekeeping with realistic expectations, make peacekeeping operations stronger and safer and mobilize greater support for political solutions and for well-structured, well-equipped, and well-trained forces. Member States and regional organizations endorsed the Declaration of Shared Commitments on UN peacekeeping, which includes 45 commitments within eight key areas. To increase momentum on Action for Peacekeeping by focusing on a few systematic and cross-cutting priorities, in 2021 the Secretary-General launched Action for Peacekeeping Plus (A4P+) to provide an implementation strategy for A4P key priorities focused across seven thematic areas.
Future of Peacekeeping Project
The Action for Peacekeeping initiative is focused on strengthening the peacekeeping operations of today and remains the central framework for peacekeeping policy and reform. At the same time, longer-term trends in peace and conflict need to be addressed. In this regard, the Future of UN Peacekeeping Operations project attempted to imagine what the peacekeeping operations of the future might look like. The project explored ways to adapt and redesign peace operations, drawing on broad and inclusive consultations with UN and non-UN stakeholders, including discussions within and outside of the UN Secretariat as well as dozens of in-depth interviews with peacekeeping stakeholders such as representatives of Member States, academia, civil society, regional organizations and former peacekeeping practitioners.
Peacekeeping policy and strategy reform
Over the years, various significant reforms have taken place to tackle increased demand, effectively implement mandates, manage service delivery, ensure adequate resources and increase consistent engagement by Member States.
- The UN Peace and Security Reforms (2017): The reforms consolidated and integrated the peace and security pillar and aligned it more closely with the human rights and development pillars, with the overarching goal of enhancing the effectiveness and coherence of peacekeeping operations and special political missions and facilitating the delivery of Agenda 2030.
- The High-Level Independent Panel on peace operations (HIPPO): The Panel was established to conduct a comprehensive assessment of the state of UN peace operations, and the emerging needs of the future. The resulting HIPPO report (2016), entitled “Uniting our strengths for peace: politics, partnerships and people”, provided recommendations on how the UN can enhance its work to prevent conflict, achieve durable political settlements, protect civilians, and sustain peace.
- The United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial process began in 2014 and is the seminal high-level event for UN peacekeeping, held biennially with the participation of foreign and defense ministers. It focuses on generating political support for the work of peacekeeping as well as high-performing and specialized capabilities and other pledges that meet UN needs, including new or expanded, sustainable capacity-building, training, and equipping partnerships in key areas. Since the process started, the UN has been able to create the Peacekeeping Capability Readiness System (PCRS) and populate it with pledges of uniformed capabilities to deploy high-performing contingents more rapidly and to strengthen the overall performance of UN peacekeeping.
- The New Horizons (2010) initiative aimed to improve peacekeeping operations by emphasizing a shared vision, political strategy, and enhanced systems. The resulting document: A New Partnership Agenda: Charting a New Horizon for UN Peacekeeping underlined key reforms including stronger global partnerships, improved mission planning, clear political direction, defined roles, faster deployment, a new field support strategy, and innovative capability development.
- Capstone Doctrine (2008) outlines the evolution of UN peacekeeping and its foundational concepts, describes how planning and implementation of UN peacekeeping operations is conducted, and explains some of the major lessons learned from six decades of UN peacekeeping experience.
- World Summit (2005) made bold decisions in the areas of development, security and human rights and resulted in two new bodies, a Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) to help countries in transition from war to peace and a strengthened UN Human Rights Council (HRC).
- Panel on United Nations Peace Operations (2000) assessed the shortcomings of the existing system and made specific and realistic recommendations for change. The resulting report, known as the Brahimi Report (after Lakhdar Brahimi, the Chair of the Panel), called for renewed political commitment on the part of Member States; significant institutional changes and increased financial support.