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What is peacekeeping? United Nations Peacekeeping helps countries torn by conflict create conditions for lasting peace.

Peacekeeping has proven to be one of the most effective tools available to the UN to assist host countries navigate the difficult path from conflict to peace. Peacekeeping has unique strengths, including legitimacy, burden sharing, and an ability to deploy and sustain troops and police from around the globe, integrating them with civilian peacekeepers to advance multidimensional mandates. UN Peacekeepers provide security and the political and peacebuilding support to help countries make the difficult, early transition from conflict to peace. UN Peacekeeping is guided by three basic principles: Consent of the parties; Impartiality; Non-use of force except in self-defence and defence of the mandate.

Peacekeeping is flexible and over the past two decades has been deployed in many configurations. There are currently 16 UN peace operations deployed on four continents. Today's multidimensional peacekeeping operations are called upon not only to maintain peace and security, but also to facilitate the political process, protect civilians, assist in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants; support the organization of elections, protect and promote human rights and assist in restoring the rule of law. Success is never guaranteed, because UN Peacekeeping almost by definition goes to the most physically and politically difficult environments. However, we have built up a demonstrable record of success over our 60 years of existence, including winning the Nobel Peace Prize. History of peacekeeping United Nations Peacekeeping began in 1948 when the Security Council authorized the deployment of UN military observers to the Middle East. The mission's role was to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and its Arab neighbours an operation which became known as the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO). Since then, 66 peacekeeping operations have been deployed by the UN, 53 of them since 1988. Over the years, hundreds of thousands of military personnel, as well as tens of thousands of UN police and other civilians from more than 120 countries have participated in UN peacekeeping operations. More than 2,900 UN peacekeepers from some 120 countries have died while serving under the UN flag. We have broken the history of peacekeeping into three sections: The early years How UN Peacekeeping started;

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The post-cold war surge How UN Peacekeeping has changed over time; The present Where UN Peacekeeping is now. The early years UN Peacekeeping was born at a time when Cold War rivalries frequently paralyzed the Security Council. Peacekeeping was primarily limited to maintaining ceasefires and stabilizing situations on the ground, providing crucial support for political efforts to resolve conflict by peaceful means.

UNPhoto UNEF Yugoslav troops on patrol duty in 1957. Those missions consisted of unarmed military observers and lightly armed troops with primarily monitoring, reporting and confidence-building roles. The first two peacekeeping operations deployed by the UN were the UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) and the UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP). Both of these missions, which continue operating to this day, exemplified the observation and monitoring type of operation and had authorized strengths in the low hundreds. The UN military observers were unarmed. The earliest armed peacekeeping operation was the First UN Emergency Force (UNEF I) deployed successfully in 1956 to address the Suez Crisis. The UN Operation in the Congo (ONUC), launched in 1960, was the first large-scale mission having nearly 20,000 military personnel at its peak. ONUC demonstrated the risks involved in trying to bring stability to war-torn regions - 250 UN personnel died while serving on that mission, including the Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold. In the 1960s and 1970s, the UN established short-term missions in the Dominican Republic - Mission of the Representative of the Secretary-General in the Dominican Republic (DOMREP), West New Guinea (West Irian) - UN Security Force in West New Guinea( UNSF), and Yemen - UN Yemen Observation Mission (UNYOM), and started longer term deployments in Cyprus UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) and the Middle East - UN Emergency Force II (UNEF II), UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) and UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL). In 1988, UN peacekeepers were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. At that time, the Nobel Committee cited the Peacekeeping Forces through their efforts have made important contributions towards the realization of one of the fundamental tenets of the United Nations. Thus, the world organization has come to play a more central part in world affairs and has been invested with increasing trust. Post Cold-War surge With the end of the Cold War, the strategic context for UN Peacekeeping changed dramatically.

UN Photo/Ky Chung

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UNOCI peacekeepers on patrol in Cte d'Ivoire, 2005. The UN shifted and expanded its field operations from traditional missions involving generally observational tasks performed by military personnel to complex multidimensional enterprises. These multidimensional missions were designed to ensure the implementation of comprehensive peace agreements and assist in laying the foundations for sustainable peace. The nature of conflicts also changed over the years. UN Peacekeeping, originally developed as a means of dealing with inter-State conflict, was increasingly being applied to intra-State conflicts and civil wars. UN Peacekeepers were now increasingly asked to undertake a wide variety of complex tasks, from helping to build sustainable institutions of governance, to human rights monitoring, to security sector reform, to the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants. Although the military remained the backbone of most peacekeeping operations, there were now many faces to peacekeeping including: administrators economists police officers legal experts de-miners electoral observers human rights monitors civil affairs and governance specialists humanitarian workers communications and public information experts

1989 - 1994: Rapid increase in numbers After the Cold War ended, there was a rapid increase in the number of peacekeeping operations. With a new consensus and a common sense of purpose, the Security Council authorized a total of 20 new operations between 1989 and 1994, raising the number of peacekeepers from 11,000 to 75,000. Peacekeeping operations established in such countries as Angola - UN Angola Verification Mission I (UNAVEM I) and UN Angola Verification Mission II (UNAVEM II), Cambodia - UN Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC), El Salvador UN Observer Mission in El Salvador (ONUSAL), Mozambique - UN Operation in Mozambique (ONUMOZ) and Namibia UN Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG), were deployed to: help implement complex peace agreements; stabilize the security situation; re-organize military and police; elect new governments and build democratic institutions.

The mid-1990s: A period of reassessment The general success of earlier missions raised expectations for UN Peacekeeping beyond its capacity to deliver. This was especially true in the mid 1990s in situations when the Security Council was not able to authorize sufficiently robust mandates or provide adequate resources. Missions were established in situations where the guns had not yet fallen silent, in areas such as the former Yugoslavia UN Protection Force (UNPROFOR), Rwanda - UN Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR) and Somalia - UN Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II), where there was no peace to keep. These three high-profile peacekeeping operations came under criticism as peacekeepers faced situations where warring parties failed to adhere to peace agreements, or where the peacekeepers themselves were not provided adequate

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resources or political support. As civilian casualties rose and hostilities continued, the reputation of UN Peacekeeping suffered. The setbacks of the early and mid-1990s led the Security Council to limit the number of new peacekeeping missions and begin a process of self-reflection to prevent such failures from happening again. The Secretary-General commissioned an independent inquiry [S/1999/1257] into the actions of the United Nations during the 1994 genocide in Rwanda and, at the request of the General Assembly, provided a comprehensive assessment [A/54/549] on the 1993-1995 events in Srebrenica in the former Yugoslavia. The circumstances that led to the UN withdrawal from Somalia were also carefully examined [S/1995/231] . In the meantime, UN peacekeepers continued their long-term operations in the Middle East, Asia and Cyprus. With continuing crises in a number of countries and regions, the essential role of UN Peacekeeping was soon emphatically reaffirmed. In the second half of the 1990s, the Council authorized new UN operations in: Angola - UN Angola Verification Mission III (UNAVEM III) and UN Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA); Bosnia and Herzegovina - UN Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH); Croatia - UN Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia (UNCRO), UN Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES) and UN Civilian Police Support Group (UNPSG); the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia - UN Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP); Guatemala - UN Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA); Haiti - UN Support Mission in Haiti (UNSMIH) UN Transition Mission in Haiti (UNTMIH) and UN Civilian Police Mission in Haiti (MIPONUH).

Towards the 21st century: New operations, new challenges At the turn of the century, the UN undertook a major exercise to examine the challenges to peacekeeping in the 1990s and introducing reform. The aim was to strengthen our capacity to effectively manage and sustain field operations. With a greater understanding of the limits and potential of UN Peacekeeping, the UN was asked to perform even more complex tasks. This started in 1999 when the UN served as the administrator of both Kosovo in the former Yugoslavia UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), and in East Timor (now Timor-Leste) - UN Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET), which was in the process of gaining independence from Indonesia. Over the next decade, the Security Council also established large and complex peacekeeping operations in a number of African countries: Burundi - UN Operation in Burundi (ONUB); Chad and the Central African Republic - UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT); Cte dIvoire - UN Operation in Cte d'Ivoire (UNOCI); Democratic Republic of the Congo - UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) and UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); Eritrea/Ethiopia - UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) Liberia - UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL); Sierra Leone - UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL); Sudan - UN Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS) in the south of the country and African Union-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) in Darfur), UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and UN Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS)

Peacekeepers also returned to resume vital peacekeeping and peacebuilding operations where fragile peace had frayed, in Haiti - UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and the newly independent Timor-Leste - UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT). Many of these operations have now completed their mandates, including the UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT), UN Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC), UN Operation in

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Burundi (ONUB), UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) and UN Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) and UN Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS). In the first decade of the century, UN Peacekeeping found itself stretched like never before and increasingly called upon to deploy to remote, uncertain operating environments and into volatile political contexts. Peacekeeping faced a varied set of challenges, including challenges to deliver on its largest, most expensive and increasingly complex missions, challenges to design and execute viable transition strategies for missions where a degree of stability has been attained, and challenges to prepare for an uncertain future and set of requirements. The present By May 2010, UN Peacekeeping operations had more than 124,000 military, police and civilian staff. Since then UN Peacekeeping has entered a phase of consolidation . The numbers have, for the first time in a decade, started to decline slightly, with the reduction of troops in UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) and the withdrawal of UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) at the end of 2010.

UN Photo/Logan Abassi A MINUSTAH peacekeeper serves food at campaign against life-like toy guns However, this by no means indicates that the challenges faced by the UN are diminishing. While the numbers of military peacekeepers may be decreasing, the demand for field missions is expected to remain high, and peacekeeping will continue to be one of the UNs most complex operational tasks. Moreover, the political complexity facing peacekeeping operations and the scope of their mandates, including on the civilian side, remain very broad. There are strong indications that certain specialized capabilities including police will be in especially high demand over the coming years. Today's mutlidimensional peacekeeping will continue to facilitate the political process, protect civilians, assist in the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of former combatants; support the organization of elections, protect and promote human rights and assist in restoring the rule of law. Past peacekeeping operations You will find links to all our past operations below. Note that missions are often given new names as they complete their existing mandate and begin a new set of objectives. Africa United Nations Angola Verification Mission I (UNAVEM I) United Nations Angola Verification Mission II (UNAVEM II) United Nations Angola Verification Mission III (UNAVEM III) United Nations Aouzou Strip Observer Group (UNASOG) United Nations Assistance Mission for Rwanda (UNAMIR) United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) United Nations Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINURCA) United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) United Nations Observer Mission in Angola (MONUA)

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United Nations Observer Mission in Liberia (UNOMIL) United Nations Observer Mission in Sierra Leone (UNOMSIL) United Nations Observer Mission Uganda-Rwanda (UNOMUR) United Nations Operation in Burundi (ONUB) United Nations Operation in Cte d'Ivoire (MINUCI) United Nations Operation in Mozambique (ONUMOZ) United Nations Operation in Somalia I (UNOSOM I) United Nations Operation in Somalia II (UNOSOM II) UN Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS) United Nations Operation in the Congo (ONUC) United Nations Organization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUC) United Nations Transition Assistance Group (UNTAG)

Americas Mission of the Representative of the Secretary-General in the Dominican Republic (DOMREP) United Nations Civilian Police Mission in Haiti (MIPONUH) United Nations Mission in Haiti (UNMIH) United Nations Observer Group in Central America (ONUCA) United Nations Observer Mission in El Salvador (ONUSAL) United Nations Support Mission in Haiti (UNSMIH) United Nations Transition Mission in Haiti (UNTMIH) United Nations Verification Mission in Guatemala (MINUGUA)

Asia and the Pacific United Nations Advance Mission in Cambodia (UNAMIC) United Nations Good Offices Mission in Afghanistan and Pakistan (UNGOMAP) United Nations India-Pakistan Observation Mission (UNIPOM) United Nations Mission of Observers in Tajikistan (UNMOT) United Nations Mission of Support in East Timor (UNMISET) United Nations Security Force in West New Guinea (UNSF) United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET) United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC)

Europe United Nations Civilian Police Support Group (UNPSG) United Nations Confidence Restoration Operation in Croatia (UNCRO) United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH) United Nations Mission of Observers in Prevlaka (UNMOP) United Nations Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG) United Nations Preventive Deployment Force (UNPREDEP) United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) United Nations Transitional Administration for Eastern Slavonia, Baranja and Western Sirmium (UNTAES)

Middle East United Nations Emergency Force I (UNEF I) United Nations Emergency Force II (UNEF II) United Nations Iran-Iraq Military Observer Group (UNIIMOG) United Nations Iraq-Kuwait Observation Mission (UNIKOM) United Nations Observation Group in Lebanon (UNOGIL) United Nations Yemen Observation Mission (UNYOM)

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Current peacekeeping operations There are currently 16 UN peace operations deployed on four continents.

These include 15 peacekeeping operations, and one special political mission in Afghanistan. These are all led by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO). Africa United Nations Mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) African Union-UN Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID) UN Operation in Cte d'Ivoire (UNOCI) UN Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) UN Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO)

The United Nations Mission in the Sudan (UNMIS) ended on 9 July 2011. It is now listed in past operations. Americas UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH)

Asia and the Pacific UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT) UN Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) *

Europe UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP) UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK)

Middle East UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) UN Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO)

* Please note UNAMA is a special political mission, directed and supported by DPKO. Forming a new operation The Security Council determines the deployment of a new UN Peacekeeping operation.

UN Photo/Marco Dormino A new Formed Police Unit from Bangladesh arrives in Haiti to serve with MINUSTAH A number of steps have to happen before that decision is reached.

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Initial consultation As a conflict develops, worsens, or approaches resolution, the UN is frequently involved in a number of consultations to determine the best response by the international community. These consultations would likely involve: All relevant United Nations actors The potential host government and the parties on the ground Member States, including States that might contribute troops and police to a peacekeeping operation Regional and other intergovernmental organizations Other relevant key external partners

During this initial phase the UN Secretary-General may request a strategic assessment to identify all possible options for UN engagement. Technical field assessment As soon as security conditions permit, the Secretariat usually deploys a technical assessment mission to the country or territory where the deployment of a UN Peacekeeping operation is envisaged. The assessment mission analyzes and assesses the overall security, political, military, humanitarian and human rights situation on the ground, and its implications for a possible operation. Based on the findings and recommendations of the assessment mission, the UN Secretary-General will issue a report to the Security Council. This report will present options for the establishment of a peacekeeping operation as appropriate including its size and resources. The report will also include financial implications and statement of preliminary estimated costs. Security Council resolution If the Security Council determines that deploying a UN Peacekeeping operation is the most appropriate step to take, it will formally authorize this by adopting a resolution. The resolution sets out the operations mandate and size, and details the tasks it will be responsible for performing. The budget and resources are then subject to General Assembly approval. Appointment of senior officials The Secretary-General normally appoints a Head of Mission (usually a Special Representative) to direct the peacekeeping operation. The Head of Mission reports to the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations at the UN Headquarters. The Secretary-General also appoints a peacekeeping operations Force Commander and Police Commissioner, and senior civilian staff. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) and the Department of Field Support (DFS) are then responsible for staffing the civilian components of a peacekeeping operation. Planning and deployment In the meantime, the Head of Mission and DPKO-DFS lead the planning for the political, military, operational and support (i.e., logistics and administration) aspects of the peacekeeping operation. The planning phase usually involves the establishment of a Headquarters-based joint working group or integrated mission task force, with participation of all relevant UN departments, funds and programmes. Deployment Deployment of an operation proceeds then as quickly as possible, taking into account the security and political conditions on the ground. It often starts with an advance team to establish mission headquarters and leads to a gradual build-up to encompass all components and regions, as required by the mandate.

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Who provides peacekeepers? The UN has no standing army or police force of its own, and Member States are asked to contribute military and police personnel required for each operation. Peacekeepers wear their countries uniform and are identified as UN Peacekeepers only by a UN blue helmet or beret and a badge. Civilian staff of peacekeeping operations are international civil servants, recruited and deployed by the UN Secretariat. Reporting to the Security Council The Secretary-General will then provide regular reports to the Security Council on the implementation of the mission mandate. The Security Council reviews these reports and briefings, and renews and adjusts the mission mandate, as required, until the missions is completed or closed. Financing peacekeeping While decisions about establishing, maintaining or expanding a peacekeeping operation are taken by the Security Council, the financing of UN Peacekeeping operations is the collective responsibility of all UN Member States.

UN Photo/Marie Frechon UNAMID holds a ceremony in Nyala, Sudan, to celebrate the arrival of five tactical helicopters from the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. Pictured is one of the long-awaited helicopters. Every Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share towards peacekeeping. This is in accordance with the provisions of Article 17 of the Charter of the United Nations. The General Assembly apportions peacekeeping expenses based on a special scale of assessments under a complex formula that Member States themselves have established. This formula takes into account, among other things, the relative economic wealth of Member States, with the five permanent members of the Security Council required to pay a larger share because of their special responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The General Assembly reaffirmed these and other general principles underlying the financing of peacekeeping operations in resolution 55/235 (23 December 2000) More on how UN Peacekeeping is financed. See the scale of assessments applicable to UN peacekeeping operations in the selected General Assembly documents. How much does peacekeeping cost? The budget for UN Peacekeeping operations for the fiscal year 1 July 2011-30 June 2012 is about $7.06 billion [A/C.5/65/19] . By way of comparison, this is less than half of one per cent of world military expenditures in 2010. The estimated cost of all UN Peacekeeping operations from 1948 to June 2010 amounts to about $69 billion. The top 10 providers of assessed contributions to United Nations Peacekeeping operations in 2011-2012 [A/64/220] are:

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1. United States (27.14%) 2. Japan (12.53%) 3. United Kingdom (8.15%)
4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Germany (8.02%) France (7.55%) Italy (5.00%) China (3.93%) Canada (3.21%) Spain (3.18%) Republic of Korea (2.26%)

Many countries have also voluntarily made additional resources available to support UN Peacekeeping efforts on a nonreimbursable basis in the form of transportation, supplies, personnel and financial contributions above and beyond their assessed share of peacekeeping costs. Although the payment of peacekeeping assessments is mandatory, as of 31 August 2011, Member States owed approximately $5.30 billion in current and back peacekeeping dues. Approved resources for peacekeeping operations in selected General Assembly documents. How are resources budgeted? Budgets of peacekeeping operations are based on the missions mandate from the Security Council. As such, they are strategic documents aligning resources to achieve the overall objectives of the operation. Each peacekeeping operation has its own budget and account which includes operational costs such as transport and logistics and staff costs such as salaries. The peacekeeping budget cycle runs from 1 July to 30 June. This cycle is rarely aligned with the Security Council mandate; however budgets are prepared for 12 months based on of the most current mandate of the operation. The Secretary-General submits budget proposal to the Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ). The ACABQ reviews the proposal and makes recommendations to the General Assemblys Fifth Committee for its review and approval. Ultimately, the budget is endorsed by the General Assembly as a whole. At the end of the financial cycle, each peacekeeping operation prepares and submits a performance report which shows the actual use of resources. This report is also considered and approved by the General Assembly. More on the process of establishing peacekeeping operation budget. How are peacekeepers compensated? The UN has no military forces of its own, and Member States provide, on a voluntary basis, the military and police personnel required for each peacekeeping operation. Peacekeeping soldiers are paid by their own Governments according to their own national rank and salary scale. Countries volunteering uniformed personnel to peacekeeping operations are reimbursed by the UN at a flat rate of a little over US$1,028 per soldier per month, as most recently approved by the General Assembly in 2002. Police and other civilian personnel are paid from the peacekeeping budgets established for each operation. The UN also reimburses Member States for providing equipment, personnel and support services to military or police contingents.