Peacekeeping

Praise and criticism over perceived triumphs and failures peppered demands for clearly defined mandates, sustained funding, entry and exit strategies and strict compliance with core principles as the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations concluded its general debate today.

The overall structure and systems on which United Nations peacekeeping relied were “not always optimal” and it was a common duty among all stakeholders — Headquarters, regional organizations, United Nations agencies and Member States alike — to determine which components could be improved in the coming years, Under-Secretary-General Hervé Ladsous told the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations today.

Concluding its 2011 substantive session, the Special Committee on Peacekeeping today condemned, in the strongest possible terms, the killing of United Nations peacekeeping personnel, as well as targeted attacks and criminal acts, such as kidnapping and carjacking.

The United Nations must urgently address the challenges of modern peacekeeping, including a severe imbalance in the “division of labour” between troop and financial contributors, and resource shortfalls that left peacekeepers vulnerable to attacks, delegates said today as the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations concluded its general debate.

The United Nations would aim in the coming year to build on 2010 efforts to bolster the ability of the “blue helmets” to protect civilians, defuse conflict and foster sustainable peace in strife-torn areas through a range of policy-development, operational capacity, field support, planning and oversight-improvement measures, the head of the world body’s peacekeeping operations told the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations as it opened its 2011 substantive session today.

Noting that the number of complex peacekeeping operations has increased in recent years, the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations encouraged, in the final report of its 2010 substantive session, which concluded early Saturday morning, the continuation and finalization of the ongoing restructuring of peacekeeping at United Nations Headquarters and indicated that it intended to follow up on the steps already taken.

United Nations peacekeepers were performing commendably despite the complexity of mandates and the lack of key capabilities, the representative of Bangladesh told the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations today as it concluded its general debate. He said that prevailing mismatches between complex mandates and resources might be overcome through careful study and building up the required capabilities.

With the United Nations peacekeeping architecture stretched and under increasing stress, Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon had developed an “ambitious, forward-looking” agenda to better enable it to contain violence, protect civilians and help national actors build peace after conflict, the head of the world body’s peacekeeping operations said today as the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations opened its 2010 substantive session.

The United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations is launching a global effort to recruit more women police into its peacekeeping operations, as part of the campaign launched in May 2009 entitled “Power to Empower” that aims to move the ranks of the Organization towards gender equity.

20 March 2009

General AssemblyGA/PK/202

Department of Public Information • News and Media Division • New York

Special Committee on

Peacekeeping Operations

211^th Meeting (Night)