Peacekeeping missions are lightly armed international forces tasked with monitoring or implementing the terms of ceasefires, withdrawals and other conditions in conflict zones. They support governments in their primary responsibility to protect civilians, and they can also help defuse tensions and create the environment for a political settlement.
Despite the high number of deaths, peacekeeping has been relatively successful and is often credited with helping countries emerge from conflict. UN peacekeeping operations can only be authorized if the warring parties agree to their deployment. In the absence of such consent, however, peacekeeping’s effectiveness is limited. When a government, as in the case of Syria, refuses to cooperate, the United Nations is not able to intervene and prevent further violence.
Since 1948, more than 2 million women and men from 124 countries have served in 71 peacekeeping operations. They have been deployed in a wide variety of places, from the mountains of Abyei to the lakes of Kenya and Uganda, and can fit into stadiums in the size of Hasselt (Belgium), Noisy-le Grand (France) or Esbjerg (Denmark).
New theories and concepts emerged around the turn of the millennium, making peacekeeping more closely linked with ideas of liberal peace, democracy and development. In a context where the relationship between the peacekeepers and the people they are protecting is crucial to success, this shift is a necessity.