PRESS BRIEFING BY USG FOR PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS

Press Briefing

PRESS BRIEFING BY USG FOR PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS

The Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Bernard Miyet, held a Headquarters press briefing this morning to commemorate a half a century of United Nations involvement in peacekeeping operations.

Mr. Miyet said 29 May marked the fiftieth anniversary of the Security Council's decision to create the first peacekeeping operation in Palestine. During the past 50 years, 49 operations had been deployed, 37 of which were created after 1988. Today, there are about 14,500 troops, military observers, peacekeepers, and civilian police serving in 17 different peacekeeping missions.

After a few years of examining the capacity and role of the United Nations in peacekeeping, the Council decided in March to create the United Nations Mission in the Central African Republic (MINURCA). It was the first operation to be created in two years, and the first in Africa in five years. The Mission was also a sign for the Africans and the international community that the United Nations wanted to continue its peacekeeping role.

Regarding the evolution of peacekeeping over the years, Mr. Miyet said that, during the cold war, the United Nations was "the safe way" to deal with international confrontations. United Nations troops were deployed in areas where there was conflict between two States. After the cold war, United Nations peacekeeping operations had "a few hours of glory", but also faced disappointments. Perhaps too much had been asked of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations during a period when its Secretariat did not have all the tools necessary to carry out its activities. Yet, at the same time, "miracles" took place during that period. Mr. Miyet said his two predecessors, Kofi Annan and Marrack Goulding, had great achievements to their credit.

Too much had been made of incidents in Somalia, Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia, he said. Remarkable achievement had occurred in El Salvador, Guatemala, Mozambique and Namibia, and if the citizens of those countries were asked whether the peacekeeping operations had been a waste of resources, time and intelligence, their replies would offer a very different view of peacekeeping.

In the last few years, after difficulties and failures in some countries, there had been a tendency to turn to regional peacekeeping, Mr. Miyet continued. There had been a time for large-scale operations, when the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the multinational Stabilization Force (SFOR) had gone into Bosnia and Herzegovina. Now, there was a trend towards restricting the United Nations to small-scale, low-risk operations in countries where there was a clear agreement between the parties, a peace plan in place. Other problems were dealt with by coalitions of subregional organizations.

Recently, however, a 7,500-power United Nations force in Eastern Slavonia had achieved a very difficult mandate, he added. At the same time, despite the extensive force sent by NATO to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the situation there remained difficult.

The United Nations still had a role to play in peacekeeping, Mr. Miyet said. Peacekeeping was an essential link between two of the Organization's main activities: peacemaking and peace-building. The Council's ability to mediate in the peace process would be enhanced if the Council could supply the means to implement a peace agreement. Deployment of a peacekeeping force could enhance its capacity during the peace-building process, because it had been present at times of crisis.

Without United Nations peacekeeping operations, African countries often believed that their problems might be ignored, he said. They also feared that developed countries, especially European countries, might deal with their own crises solely with their troops and would not support other peacekeeping activities. The mission in the Central African Republic was a positive symbol that demonstrated that the United Nations -- as well as the international community as a whole and the Western States -- were still ready to participate in such operations.

Mr. Miyet said he was prepared to take questions regarding mandates, the type of operations, managerial issues, and ethical and moral standards.

A correspondent asked if the status of the United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP) had changed after the nuclear tests conducted by both countries. Mr. Miyet said he had received no reports from the field concerning abnormally high hostilities in that region. Tensions remained high, but they had been so since the mission's inception. There was a pattern of casualties in that area, but there had been no abnormal movement of troops or flare-ups of hostilities over the recent period. It was one of the bloodiest regions where a peacekeeping operation was present. About 1,400 casualties had been reported in the area since the beginning of the year. The United Nations would maintain its level of patrolling and try to do its utmost to demonstrate that the international community was still present.

Asked about the status of the United Nations Mission in Bosnia and Herzegovina (UNMIBH), Mr. Miyet said the International Police Task Force (ITPF) in that country was involved in the training, restructuring and monitoring of the police forces of both parties. It was trying to implement, as forcefully as possible, the notions of professionalism of the police. It was also trying to enforce a multi-ethnic standard for the police forces in villages of both parties. In addition, the Force was working to enforce a common license plate policy for the entire country.

Should the United Nations police forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina work with NATO to capture war criminals? a correspondent asked. Mr. Miyet said it

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was clear that the mandate of UNMIBH only included monitoring and assisting the local police. There was no other mandate. The Secretary-General had said that the criminals needed to be brought to The Hague, and the United Nations welcomed all efforts to achieve that goal. The IPTF had not been given the mandate nor the capacity for that task.

A correspondent asked if there were any measures under way to ensure better safety for peacekeeping personnel. Mr. Miyet said the lessons of the past had been taken into account. That could be seen especially clearly in the operation in Eastern Slavonia, where a strong deterrent capacity had been provided. Many missions still faced the threat of hostage-taking situations. Hostages had been taken in Georgia, only a few months ago, though those situations were not politically related but acts of banditry. He had made a report to the Council last week to determine whether there might be new ways to protect peacekeepers. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations was exploring new methods, particularly in situations where there were only unarmed military observers in a country. Sometimes the protection was ensured by regional peacekeeping forces or, more frequently, by the parties involved.

Asked about the United Nations efforts in Haiti, Mr. Miyet said he had not gone to Haiti to provide good offices. He went there to express the concern of the Secretary-General and the Security Council about the lack of progress. He had stressed that there was a need for a real dialogue between all parties. In addition, there was a need to ensure the respect for a democratic country's constitution and institutions, and elections would have to be held at the right time. The international community expressed its willingness to help in the electoral process. Currently, there were discussions to determine on which basis progress could be achieved, and hopefully the process would move forward. He had also met with the Friends of Haiti.

The same correspondent asked about reports of a Haitian delegation in South Africa. Mr. Miyet said he had not been informed of such a delegation.

It had been reported that Serbs were streaming out of Croatia, and that the country was now 97 per cent Croat, a correspondent said. Yet, the operation was cited as a success? Responding, Mr. Miyet said that the mandate of the operation was to ensure the peaceful reintegration of Eastern Slavonia into Croatia. At the end of the mission, the parties must become responsible. The United Nations was still there in order to ensure that things were going in the right direction. It was widely recognized that if there was a multi-ethnic institution in Eastern Slavonia, which was functioning well and with professionalism, it was the police. The police was behaving in the right manner. There had been a problem with the judiciary regarding a lack of follow-up in ensuring that people were tried in a timely fashion.

The problem of Serbs leaving the country was a matter of concern, he said. He had personally discussed the establishment of a strong mission of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) in the country last

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year in order to be promote the return of displaced persons and refugees. The movement of returnees had been slow and too weak. The Government must be encouraged to respect its commitments. He also noted that there were Serbs leaving the region; there were also no Croats returning, because of lack of economic opportunities.

A correspondent asked about the quality of peacekeeping operations in the former Soviet republics. Mr. Miyet said there were security problems in Georgia and Tajikistan. Those countries had difficult internal situations. There was still fighting, and it was difficult to patrol and operate, because the peacekeeping personnel in both countries were unarmed. The United Nations needed to appear neutral and independent, so its personnel would not be at risk. The Department had proposed a security unit in Georgia, and it had tried to rely on a joint security unit in Tajikistan, comprised of forces from the government and the United Tajik Opposition (UTO). In those regions, the United Nations had a presence, but the political processes were long and difficult. The Organization's role was limited in those countries due to the small presence of the operations.

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