What are UN Peacekeeping Operations?

The current situation in many parts of the world appears to be critical, especially in the security domain. We can mention the war in Ukraine, the bloody protests in Iran and Iraq, and the conflict between China and Taiwan.
Peacekeeping operations (PKOs) are mechanisms used by the UN to maintain peace and security amid disputes, prevent conflicts, and put in place ceasefires. The concept of PKO is designed on principles allowing it to avoid partisanship or bias in the conflicts being addressed. Therefore, the UN has adopted three rules to organize these operations, namely: the parties’ consent, impartiality, and the non-use of force except in defense of the mandate.

Consent of the Parties

Before the establishment of any PKO, it is necessary that the parties of a dispute agree on the intervention of the UN and the installation of the mandate in the territory of the conflict, and that there is consent between them. This is the first rule of the PKO. This agreement allows the PKO to act freely to accomplish its mission. In fulfilling its mandate, consensus must always be presented and preserved, throughout the process: the PKO requires the agreement of the parties in conflict in order to avoid unilaterality. The UN requires the consent of the host state and the other parties. If this principle is not respected, the territory’s sovereignty may be compromised, and international law will be violated.

Impartiality

The second rule of the peacekeeping operation is to be impartial. It should work without taking sides towards one clan or another. It is necessary that the mandate deployed is neutral. Impartiality is a prerequisite for preserving consensus. Otherwise, one of the dispute’s parties will be oppressed and break this UN intervention agreement. Therefore, the conflict will not be solved, as the UN hopes. The mandate objectively monitors compliance with the cease-fire. In case of agreement violation or military escalation, the mission reports it to the Security Council, the General Assembly, and the other parties to the conflict.

Non-use of Force Except in Self-defense or Defense of the Mandate:

Finally, and as the last rule, the mandate does not have the right to intervene coercively through its army (the blue helmets), under any circumstances, except in the case of a direct attack on the personnel staff of the mandate, they will be obliged to defend themselves against the aggressor.

The blue helmets were deployed first in 1956 to prevent disputes from war and attack, facilitate the passage in case of armed conflict, trying to prevent aggression through their armed experience, but they are not deployed to impose peace by force, except for their self-defense.

Currently, 13 PKO missions are deployed by the UN and sent into conflictual zones to maintain peace, and stability in different regions and continents, such as in Mali in 2013, and in Saharan regions of Morocco since 1991.

The MINUSMA Experience

On the 23rd of April 2013, by resolution 2100 of the Security Council, MINUSMA (United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali) was sent to Mali to support the Malian authorities in securing the population.

This mission has several objectives, such as:

1. Stabilization of the situation in the main towns and contribution to the state authority reestablishment throughout the country.
2. Contribution to the implementation of the roadmap for the transition, including the national dialogue, and the electoral process.
3. Protection of civilians and United Nations staff.
4. Promotion and defense of human rights.
5. Support for humanitarian action.
6. Support for the safeguarding of cultural heritage.
7. Action in favor of national and international justice.

This mission works on several aspects and not only on peacekeeping, in particular on human rights, mine action, gender unit, disarmament, demobilization and reintegration (DDR), stabilization and recovery, electoral assistance, environment/culture, protection of children and civilians, and finally on political dialogue and national reconciliation.

The United Nations has authorized the deployment of 13,289 personnel to the region, including 10,000 troops and police on the ground from over 110 countries. They are now 17,612 personnel, including 3,384 civilians, 11,798 contingent troops, 1,730 police, 501 staff officer, and 199 UN Volunteers. The military and police troops are mostly from African countries.

The MINURSO Experience

The United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Sahara (MINURSO) was established by Security Council resolution 690 on the 29th of April 1991, following the settlement proposal on the 30th of August 1988, and accepted by Morocco and polisario. The settlement was about the cease-fire and the organization of a referendum approved by the Security Council.
The Special Representative of the Secretary-General was to have exclusive responsibility over matters relating to the referendum and was to be assisted in his tasks by an integrated group of civilian, military, and civilian police personnel to be known as the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Sahara’s region.
The total number of personnel deployed in the Sahara region is 456. It includes 230 civilians, 20 contingent troops, 185 experts on mission, 2 policemen, 7 staff officers, and 12 UN volunteers.
Morocco presented the “autonomy plan” in 2007 in the General Assembly to end the territorial dispute, and several states have called it a credible and realistic solution.

The Moroccan Experience with Blue Helmets

Morocco is currently contributing with 1,700 FAR soldiers serving under the UN flag, especially in MINUSCA in the Central African and in MONUSCO in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and less in other missions in Africa. This contribution places Morocco as the 12th largest contributor of Blue Helmets in the world.

These missions can be of different lengths: 3 months, 6 months, 9 months, or one year.
FARs missions are mostly related to the insurance of the protection of civilians, humanitarian and human rights, support for the democratic transition, and peacebuilding.

Since 2016, Morocco lost many of its troops while they were doing their service as Blue Hamlets, as many received the Dag Hammarskjöld medal, a posthumous award given by the United Nations to honor these soldiers.

This year, Morocco lost 3 of its soldiers in the UN missions in CAR and DRC. They face many difficulties, especially when the situation between the contingents becomes critical and danger approaches.
Blue helmets are not combatants, as they are not allowed to take coercive action, which means that it is strictly forbidden under the law of armed conflict to attack them (under international humanitarian law). However, this is not always the case, as we have just seen with the cases of Moroccan peacekeepers.
Many regions are in a security crisis, such as Ukraine and Taiwan, and the UN did not intervene yet. Many missions have been struggling for decades. The end of these missions does not seem near, and the dream of peace in these regions seems far away.