A Peacekeeping mission is a military and police force sent to monitor the ceasefire in a country that has been at war, or whose government is being forced out by armed rebels. The UN Security Council gives it operational control, and it can be made up of troops from member states who remain members of their own armed forces and obey its instructions, or it can involve a “brigade” drawn from a number of countries that has been established for the purpose, usually with a mix of military and civilian personnel.
Peacekeepers are usually mandated with a number of tasks that range from separating the belligerents and providing law and order to establishing post-conflict institutions and public services, disarming and demobilising former combatants, implementing power-sharing arrangements, delivering humanitarian assistance and helping restore the rule of law. They are often referred to as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets, and they can be composed of soldiers, police officers, or civil police and support staff.
One of the unique strengths of the UN is its ability to deploy a wide variety of troops and civilian police from all over the world to perform peacekeeping missions. However, the nature of these missions has changed significantly since their inception in the aftermath of the Cold War, with a significant shift from narrow ceasefire monitoring deployments to more complex multidimensional missions in volatile and challenging environments. They have also become more politicised, as peacekeeping is now linked to ideas of liberal peace and development.