Adam Day writes in on how a new era of realism should guide expectations of UN peacekeeping.
UN peacekeeping is far from perfect, and much can be done to improve the performance of missions on the ground. But we also can’t expect peacekeeping alone to solve the kinds of intractable conflicts that have arisen today, at least not with the mandates, resources, and time frames usually proposed by the Security Council.
A new realism would build on these successes and recognize that UN peacekeeping can and does deliver well beyond the tasks of ceasefire monitoring 70 years ago, even if it is unlikely to resolve today’s most intractable conflicts.
