International Peace Operations Research Articles

Responsibility Regimes for International Peace Operations, written by Eleonora Branca

Responsibility Regimes for International Peace Operations, written by Eleonora Branca

In Pursuit of Excellence: Analysing the Indispensable Nature of Conduct and Discipline of Nepali Army in UN Peace Support Missions

Nepal is currently ranked 2nd among the Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) in United Nations Peace Support Operations. In this context, this paper examines the contribution of the Nepali Army's military conduct and discipline to the effectiveness of UN Peace Support Missions. The theoretical foundations delve into pertinent theories, particularly emphasizing Kevin S. Donohue's concepts of Discipline A (voluntary, value-based Attitudes) and Discipline B (externally enforced Behavioral responses) within the military framework. Maintaining conduct and discipline in UN peace operations is essential for ensuring the credibility and legitimacy of these missions. Therefore, prior UN reports and the Secretary General's Special Bulletin from 2015 to 2022 are comparatively analyzed to reflect on occurrences of misconduct involving peacekeepers from TCCs. Likewise, a quantitative comparative analysis assesses the status of the Nepali Army in terms of military conduct analyzing the rate of allegations of misconducts against it. The study employs descriptive statistics to analyze the status of misconduct allegations including that of serious misconduct to advocate for a stronger integration of military conduct with UN peacekeeping mandates, aiming to enhance overall effectiveness and elevate ethical standards in international peace operations. The findings underscore Nepal's exemplary practices in fostering both Discipline B and Discipline A within its peacekeeping forces. The paper concludes by demonstrating the substantial positive impact of disciplined behaviour on mission outcomes

Civil Society and Peace Transformation in Sudan’s Darfur Region

Scholars increasingly agree that civil society is needed if peace operations are to succeed, and conflicts resolved. However, they disagree on the impact and influence of civil society on conflict transformation. The three international peace operations in Darfur from 2004 to 2018 experienced very limited successes, but the situation changed rapidly from 2018 onwards as the crisis transitioned from high to low-intensity conflict. How was this achieved? What factors were responsible for this conflict transformation process? This study contends that the involvement of civil society that facilitated the removal of Al-Bashir set this transformation toward positive peace in motion. Relying on descriptive design, secondary data and critical analysis, this study argues that civil society has navigated Darfur’s complex conflict terrain and contributed in good measure to the peace progress. This paper further examines the role of Darfur’s warlords as peace influencers and how their leadership styles can be utilised to bolster Darfur’s peace.

Safety and Security in International Humanitarian Missions - Assessing the Stress Level of Responders in Critical Situations during a Realistic Full-Scale Training.

Crises, wars, and disasters are remarkably increasing across the world. Responders are frequently tackled with an ever-greater number of challenges, and undoubtedly, they are physically and mentally affected during and after their missions, during which posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is considered high-risk. To the authors' knowledge, no studies have addressed which type of incident has the greatest influence to trigger stress, and consequently, to cause PTSD for the responders after their missions. A prospective longitudinal study was conducted with 69 participants of the "Safety and Security" course at the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Aid of the Federal Ministry of Interior Affairs (Berlin, Germany). The course is certified by the Hostile Environment Awareness Training (HEAT) guidelines of Europe's New Training Initiative for Civilian Crisis Management (ENTRi; Center for International Peace Operations; Berlin, Germany). Four incidents were evaluated: hostage-taking, carjacking, evacuation, and border-crossing. The participants completed the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) before and after each incident. For each incident, the delta of the PANAS scores was calculated. The differences between the described incidents, as well as the differences between novice and experienced responders, were evaluated. The hostage-taking incident had the greatest influence on the participants' temper, followed by carjacking and evacuation. Ultimately, the border-crossing event had the least effect on the responders. Novices were more affected by hostage-taking than experienced responders; however, no significant difference had been demonstrated between novices and experienced responders for the other evaluated incidents. Different incidents have big psychological impacts on humanitarian responders, in which consequences vary from short-term effects to PTSD. Therefore, humanitarian responders should be selected very carefully. They should also have more specific preparation for their missions. Mental after-care should be obligatory. Further studies are needed to understand and avoid reasons for the development of PTSD or other potential problems of responders.

Current Defence Policy and Modernisation Goals of the Croatian Armed Forces

The internal and external security environment of Croatia has changed gradually since the declaration of independence in 1991. In the beginning, as in a post-war country, hard security played a vital role in the security policy documents, as reflected in the National Security Strategy (NSS) of 2002. With the accession to the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) in 2009 and to the European Union (EU) in 2013, multilateral cooperation and collective defence had been prioritised and the new NSS from 2017 was designed to mirror this approach. The changed security environment spurred a reformed approach to defence matters and resulted in increased participation in international peace operations under EU, NATO and UN auspices. Furthermore, as a NATO member, Croatia needs to be ready to answer challenges threatening the collective security of the organisation, such as cyber threats ranging from fake news and foreign electoral intervention to cyberattacks. The first part of this analysis shows what path Croatia has taken after the declaration of independence, which is followed by introducing the current goals of Croatian security policy. Finally, international peace operations, defence spending trends and the capability development priorities of the Croatian Armed Forces are discussed.

Comparing how peace operations enable or restrict the influence of national staff: Contestation from within?

A large share of civilian staff working in international peace operations are nationals of the host state. Academic research has not yet investigated the effect of these locally recruited bureaucrats on peacebuilding. Theoretically, it is argued that to accomplish their missions in complex environments, peace operations require crucial knowledge about local perceptions, politics, and customs. Local staff can have a positive performance impact by soliciting such knowledge. But information advantages create new principal-agent problems. Peace operations have a hard time scrutinizing their employees’ allegiances, and they risk sabotage from within. Empirically, it is shown that peace operations conducted by the United Nations (UN), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the European Union (EU) differ significantly in how they navigate the ensuing tension by enabling or restricting the influence of their local staff. A new data set on the staffing of 52 peace operations as well as analysis of internal staff policies yields significant variance in the potential of local staff to influence peacebuilding policy implementation, which is most extensive in the OSCE, followed by the UN and the EU. This finding warrants more attention on the role of local staff as information gatekeepers who could be at the center of potential frictions between international and local norms and knowledge.

Opportunity and Sex Offending by International Peacekeepers in the Central African Republic

Despite their peacekeeping role in the management of internal armed conflicts, some international peacekeepers have sexually exploited local populations in host countries, resulting in dire social consequences and threats to the success of international peace operations. Although researchers have examined sexual violence committed by peacekeepers, few researchers, if any, have used routine activities theory to examine sex offending by peacekeepers. This article explored the extent to which situational opportunities influenced international peacekeepers’ engagement in the sexual exploitation of civilians in the Central African Republic, a peacekeeping host country. Data were collected from face-to-face interviews with 15 research participants, including local witnesses, peacekeepers, and U.N. policy makers, and from public records obtained from online sources. Data were coded using an inductive coding strategy and then analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings indicated that both the local and peacekeeping conditions, including lack of deterrence and accountability mechanisms, heightened the vulnerability of local populations to sex predation and motivated peacekeeper sex offenders to engage in sex offending. Local community leaders and policy makers could use study findings to promote educational programs on the institutional responsibility to protect vulnerable civilians and shape policies to prevent the commission of sexual exploitation by peacekeepers.

Expanding the peacekeeping agenda. The protection of cultural heritage in war-torn societies

ABSTRACTThis article aims to explain the emergence and assess the politico-military significance of ‘cultural peacekeeping’ (CPK) as a new task for international peace operations. The aim is to provide a conceptual appraisal of CPK and an initial insight into its objectives, opportunities and challenges. The analysis supports the inclusion of a cultural component in the mandates of peacekeeping interventions, even if we must be wary of the inherent difficulties and risk of unintended consequences. These are not to be underestimated, at the risk not only of failing to achieve the mission’s objectives but also of further deteriorating security on the ground and beyond. It follows that CPK should not be mistaken, nor presented to the public, as a minor, light, and inexpensive operation. Quite to the contrary, it is an extremely complex and politically very sensitive politico-military major exercise that needs careful planning and adequate capabilities. Misunderstanding or mismanaging CPK can severely backfire. It is a ‘double-edged weapon’ that must be handled cautiously to avoid the risk of the enemy manipulating it to its own advantage.

Learning from Experience -- International Policing

This brief sums up the main findings from the Norwegian MFA-funded project ‘Learning from Experience – International Policing’, which examined several aspects of police participation in international deployments and peace operations. The main areas of research included: 1) how Norway and like-minded countries manage knowledge in connection to the recruitment and deployment of police officers in international missions; 2) police training experiences for peace operations; 3) insights of individual Norwegian police officers who had served in international operations (1989–2016); and 4) the new UN police deployment mechanism known as the Specialized Police Team, with specific reference to the SPT that Norway deployed to MINUSTAH in order to support the development of Haitian police capacities to investigate sexual violence. The brief advances several policy recommendations based on main findings of the project.

Knowledge Management and Police Peacekeepers: Experiences and Recommendations

The number of police officers deployed to international peace operations has increased substantially over the past 20 years, and the tasks they have been mandated to perform have become more complex, particularly with regard to supporting host state police reform and development. The insights and experiences of deployed police are valuable for building understanding of what works and what does not work in peace operations and peace building more broadly. Such feedback could be used by PCCs to inform and tailor police pre-deployment training programmes, support mechanisms for deployed officers, and post-deployment reintegration practices. The mission experiences of police also provides valuable information about the police component's mandate implementation. This report explores a selection of police-contributing countries (PCCs), examining their mechanisms for deploying police officers to international missions, and then, on return from international missions, for collecting information on their experiences. From this overview, we identify good practices as well as gaps in knowledge generation, and offer some recommendations for improving the collection, management and application of mission-relevant police knowledge.

Challenges in Deploying Effective Police to International Peace Operations

This paper examines the challenges of deploying and using adequately prepared and appropriate skilled police personnel in UN peace operations. It approaches this issue primarily, although not exclusively, through the prism of training. It briefly describes changes in the demand for and role of police in contemporary peace operations, and the existing system of recruitment, selection and training of police peacekeepers. It then considers four types of problems encountered in deploying effective police personnel in the areas of supply of personnel, skillsets, predeployment training, and performance. The paper holds that problems in these interconnected areas undermine the effectiveness and impact of police components in peace operations. While the UN has made some important efforts to improve recruitment and selection of police peacekeepers, and to standardize peacekeeping training of police prior to deployment, both selection and training standards continue to be inconsistently applied and inadequate. Resolving the perpetual problem of getting police peacekeepers with the needed capabilities deployed to missions will require more than simple technical fixes; the human resources challenge for police (as well as military and civilian personnel) in UN operations goes beyond recruitment and training to include questions of effective guidance, management, resourcing, and the monitoring and evaluation of peacekeeper performance to support institutional learning and adjustment of recruitment and training processes. The problem is complex and multifaceted, not least because the UN is an international organization with management challenges that are distinct from those encountered by national public service organizations. The UN’s organizational structures and processes themselves require attention. Solutions call for commitment and corrective action by PCCs, UN HQ, and the leadership of UN field missions. The paper contributes to broader ongoing discussions about what is required to improve the impact and effectiveness of peacekeeping personnel, and of peace operations more broadly.

Un Peacekeeping as the Most Presentable Part of Japan’s 2015 Peace and Security Legislation

In September 2015, the Japanese Diet enacted a series of laws – the Peace and Security Legislation – to enable the Japan Self-Defense Force to play an enhanced role in peace deployments overseas. The enactment of the new laws was made possible by a “new” interpretation of Article 9 of the Japanese Constitution. While the main objective of the introduction of the laws was aimed at strengthening the alliance with the United States, jsdf participation in peace operations was also an important consideration politically. This article suggests that the Japanese government will now need to convince the public that the new Peace and Security Legislation is compatible with Japan’s constitutionally mandated pacifism. In light of the prospect of an expanded participation of Japan in international peace operations this will be particularly important.

Peacekeeping deployment abroad and the self-perceptions of the effect on career advancement, status and reintegration

ABSTRACTDuring the last three decades, international peace operations have multiplied. As a consequence, trainings and deployments for peace missions have become an essential part of the military’s work. Yet the importance of peace operations to the individual soldier’s career development has so far been relatively absent in academic writing. This article attempts to fill this gap by examining how soldiers perceive the effects of their peace operation deployments in terms of career opportunities and status upon reintegration in the home unit. Adopting an inductive approach, the authors analyse 50 interviews conducted with military personnel from the South African Defence Force (SANDF). The findings show mixed responses in terms of the effect of deployments on career development. In general senior staff value the experience acquired more highly than lower ranks who experience multiple deployments as having a negative effect on vertical career mobility. Nor do lower ranked personnel see any marked change in the (in) formal status upon reintegration back into their national armed force, while higher staff officers perceive an enhanced status especially where this is related to operational success. The article argues that peacekeeping deployment should be seen as a process, which has consequences for the individual soldiers’ career long after homecoming, rather than as an independent event during a lifelong career.

“Push” and “Pull” Factors in Foreign Policy: A Case Study of Austrian Participation in International Peace Operations, 1960–2015

This analysis examines the evolution of Austrian participation in international peace—and peacekeeping—operations from 1960 to the present. In doing so, the emphasis is not on the missions themselves, nor the role played by Austrian contingents over the years in various theatres of operation.1 Rather, this exegesis scrutinises the political motivation behind the decision to deploy peacekeepers, to which extent these were conscientious decisions taken by the government for specific reasons, and the role played by other factors.

All-Japan Approach to International Peace Operations

This article discusses the development and features of the All-Japan approach that can be restated as integrated inter-agency/civil-military coordination, which has been placed in Japan’s policy for international peace cooperation (ipc), and has a potential to constitute Japan’s unique contribution to international peace operations. The article provides an overview of Japan’s recent involvement in international peace operations such as in Timor-Leste, Iraq, Haiti and South Sudan, paying special attention to inter-agency/civil-military nexus in each operation both at the strategic/policy level and the operational/field level. It argues that the All-Japan approach can offer a framework for better coordination among Japanese actors on the ground, and thus it can make Japan’s contribution more ‘visible’ to the local community and populations concerned. At the same time, it also seeks to present a warning that such an approach may infringe on the unity of the mission, especially if it is a un peacekeeping operation, and disturb the coherence of multilateral efforts on the ground. Furthermore, the All-Japan approach can jeopardize genuine decision-making of Japanese actors on the ground because of the unspoken pressure from their government to formulate All-Japan activities. In short, the All-Japan approach may become an end itself rather than a means.

Cultural Awareness in Peace Operations: Effective Marketing or Strategic Communications

Cultural awareness is receiving a growing attention in disciplines studying the effects of communication. It is understood as the ability to attain knowledge about the particular cultural characteristics of the people of a certain terrain (state or region). They often reflect a cluster of certain beliefs and practices, which may substantially differ from one region to another. Cultural awareness has also gained prominence in recent academic discussion as regards international conflict resolution and crisis management. The importance of cultural awareness as a crucial element in the conduct and planning of contemporary peacekeeping and stability operations is gaining wide acknowledgement. As in Touristic Marketing in which cultural awareness is often employed as the vehicle to increase the affiliation of xenos, (the foreign visitor) with the aspired touristic product, similar approaches have developed in the study of conflict resolution. In the context of peace operations or stability operations, “the peacemaker” is also a xenos (a foreigner and a stranger) to the region they are deployed. Importantly, the evolution of international peace operations in recent years has rendered communicating the credentials of the peace dividend to the local population, as the key factor in the effective evolution of the peace mission. Accordingly, cultural awareness is considered as the element of strategic importance since it is the vehicle through which effective communication is substantiated. It generates lines of communication between the providers and the receivers of the ‘peace product’ thus progressively creating the environment for the local population to become true affiliates of the credentials that the peace mission is providing.

The sociological dimension of external military interventions: The Portuguese military abroad

Abstract This article addresses, from a sociological point of view, the involvement of the Portuguese armed forces in international peace operations. After reviewing some major sociological contributions for understanding change in military institutions and the development of international military missions, it concentrates on the Portuguese case, aiming at uncovering the place and meaning of peace operations for the Portuguese armed forces during the past two decades. After briefly recalling some facts and figures concerning the Portuguese participation in peace operations, it addresses the relevance of such involvement at different analytical levels, showing that peace operations have come to play a decisive role in the national defence political discourse, the organizational configuration of the Portuguese armed forces and the soldiers’ professional identity. The last section consists of a short prospective exercise looking at possible implications of disengagement from international peace missions. The conclusion is that, considering the strategic, organizational and socio-psychological centrality of these missions, disengagement is likely to have important consequences in the overall strategic definition, purpose and identity of the Portuguese military, while entailing an additional cost: the possible loss of at least part of a recently reinforced legitimacy.

Civil capacities for peace support operations: The case of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) has gone from being a receiver to providing assistance to post-conflict countries. Through its experience with rebuilding the country after conflict, BiH can make relevant and useful contributions to further peacebuilding and sustainable development in other countries. This article details current contributions BiH is making to international peace operations, maps the civilian capacities BiH could contribute in the future, and provides recommendations on how this could be implemented with regards to training, rostering and deployment of civilian capacities. Successful training, rostering and deployment of civilian capacities from BiH could be replicated at the Western Balkans level and bear witness to the development of security communities in BiH and the region.

Exploring PSC–military relations: Swedish officers and the private security sector in peace operations

The increasing reliance on private security companies (PSCs) in and around international peace operations has created new public–private constellations, influencing both military and civilian efforts, sometimes generating problematic relationships and even violence between public and private actors, as well as unclear divisions of labour, authority and responsibility. To explain how and why these problems occur, mapping out the understandings that these different actors have of each other in different contexts is of key importance. Through an analysis of Swedish officers’ views of private security actors, this paper aims to contribute to our understanding of the complex relationships between civilian authorities, state militaries and commercial security actors. Particularly, the article will shed new light on ‘PSC–military’ relations and the ways in which the private security sector functions as both a competitor and a career option for former or active service personnel. The article draws on a study commissioned by the Swedish Armed Forces and is empirically based on in-depth interviews and a survey of Swedish officers’ attitudes to PSCs.

Review: Maintenir La Paix En Zones Postconflit Les Nouveaux Visages De La Police

MAINTENIR LA PAIX EN ZONES POSTCONFLIT Les nouveaux visages de la police Samuel Tanner and Benoit Dupont, eds. Montreal: Presses de l'Universite de Montreal, 2012. 300 pp., $34.95 (paper) ISBN 978-2760627819In their edited volume Maintenir la paix en zones postconflit: les nouveaux visages de la police, Samuel Tanner and Benoit Dupont explore the ways in which police officers deployed in international peace operations negotiate and operationalize their mandate in the field (29). The authors argue that international police missions now play an essential role in the reestablishment of peace and order in post-conflict settings, contributing directly to the construction of accountable and responsible security institutions. These missions also support the reestablishment of security and order in the aftermath of armed conflict.Yet several pitfalls threaten the contribution of police to international peace-building. First, there is an important gap between the traditional police function in peaceful, developed societies and the police mandate in international peace missions. Building trust, transposing expertise, and diffusing knowledge on best practices present important challenges for foreign police forces. Second, international police missions are affected by the same issues that affect broader peace operations. The lack of coherence and coordination among donors tends to muddy the definition of the police mission's objectives and operations on the ground. The leadership of international police missions influences the mission's priorities and the strategies adopted to achieve its objectives. Third, there is the question of the suitability of practices involved in the preparation for deployment and the reintegration of police officers upon their return from international peace missions. Currently, these pitfalls limit the contribution of police officers abroad, as well as their ability to apply their experiences and new competencies on their return.The chapters in this volume cover three main themes. First, they offer an overview of national and regional deployment mechanisms and the rationale behind national participation. Individual chapters focus on police forces from the European Union, parts of Latin America, Canada, the United States, and Australia, and discuss the problems these forces encounter in the field as components of international peace operations. For example, Francis Pakyaf discusses the problems with coordination and coherence that have hindered broad security reform in Afghanistan by inhibiting Afghanistan's national police force. He highlights the ways in which the NATO training mission and the EU police mission in Afghanistan adopted contradictory strategies. While NATO focused on counter-insurgency and rapid capacity building to control the territory, the EU supported the professionalization of the police through extended training at the police academy of Kabul. Nathalie Duelos presents the power struggles that have opposed France and the US in the reform of the Kosovo Police Service (KSP). Disagreements between France and the US regarding the selection of policemen, the administration of the KSP, and policing procedures undermined the coherence and quality of training offered to the local police, and ultimately the professionalization of the KSP.Several contributors emphasize that levels of professionalism and competence vary greatly from one national police contingent to another. These differences influence local trust in the international mission and its personnel, as well as the quality of training and the perceived success and progress of the mission. While international police missions initially focused on training and equipping the new local police, generally, their mandate and its operationalization have evolved towards more complex objectives: building trust, reinforcing security institutions, maintaining order, supporting the local police in the conduct of their operations, and even standing in for local police when the mission has an executive mandate. …