Is UN Peacekeeping Losing Its Appeal?

 

In the early 1990s, Canada had over 3,000 troops deployed² in peacekeeping missions around the world. Today, it has only a few dozen.

Canada is not the only Western country to have greatly reduced such missions. The drop in numbers, military experts say, demonstrates the changing nature of conflict in a post-Cold War world.

Major Tim Dunne is a retired³ officer in the Canadian Armed Forces. He was deployed in several peacekeeping operations. Now, he is a researcher for the Canadian Global Affairs Institute. He said United Nations peacekeeping is "falling out of fashion." In other words, it is becoming less common and popular.

Dunne told VOA that before the collapse⁴ of the Soviet⁵ Union in 1991, most international conflicts were driven by competition between the United States and the Soviet Union. He said this created the need for a neutral army to stand between them.

Dunne said that most modern conflicts, like in Syria and Iraq, are too complex for peacekeeping to work.

"The factors that allow for effective peacekeeping aren't there anymore," Dunne said.

It is not only Canada that is rethinking the value of United Nations' peacekeeping.

Emily Estelle works for the Washington-based American Enterprise Institute. Estelle points to the lack of public support in Western nations for the costly⁶ and sometimes dangerous missions.

She used the Sahel, an area in Africa, to explain the change in operations.

She said France leads the counterterrorism operation in Mali but is working to end its involvement and the operation. She said it is in part because of pressure within France and an upcoming election.

She also said Mali and Somalia, which is facing a similar situation, would not be able to replace the influence peacekeepers have, "if and when they withdraw."

In Canada's case, the country's long-standing history to U.N. peacekeeping operations has largely been replaced by involvement in NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) operations. These include involvement in the operation that defeated the Islamic State extremist group in Iraq and Syria and the NATO operation, now ending, in Afghanistan.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's administration has promised to deploy¹ more troops and police to international peacekeeping. But the proposed numbers remain only in the hundreds.

Charlie Herbert is a former top-level NATO advisor⁷ to the Afghan Ministry⁸ of the Interior and a former director at the Defense⁹ Academy of the United Kingdom.

Herbert said Britain is showing some interest in bringing new life to U.N. peacekeeping. He sees this as a reaction to the decision to pull NATO forces out of Afghanistan.

He told VOA, "The withdrawal¹⁰ from Afghanistan marks the end of an era."

He also said the withdrawal provides the chance for "...all Western nations to reconsider the use of their military as an instrument of their foreign policy."

He said Britain is using this as a chance to reinvest in high-end peacekeeping operations. It remains¹¹ to be seen if other Western countries will follow Britain's lead.

Words in This Story

fashion –n. a style or way of behaving that is popular in a particular time and place

factor –n. something that helps produce or influence a result: one of the things that cause something to happen

allow –v. to permit (something): to regard or treat (something) as acceptable

counterterrorism –n. actions by a group, army, etc., that are done to prevent terrorist attacks and destroy terrorist networks — often used before another noun

replace – v. to do the job or duty of (someone)

era –n. a period of time that is associated with a particular quality, event, or person

1 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

2 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

3 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

4 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

5 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

6 costly   

adj.昂贵的，价值高的，豪华的

参考例句：

• It must be very costly to keep up a house like this.维修这么一幢房子一定很昂贵。
• This dictionary is very useful,only it is a bit costly.这本词典很有用，左不过贵了些。

7 advisor   

n.顾问，指导老师，劝告者

参考例句：

• They employed me as an advisor.他们聘请我当顾问。
• The professor is engaged as a technical advisor.这位教授被聘请为技术顾问。

8 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

9 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

10 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

11 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。