International Peacekeeping Research Articles

Международно-правовые рамки участия региональных организаций в операциях по поддержанию мира

The article analyzes the international legal framework for the participation of regional organizations in peacekeeping operations. Based on a review of scientific literature, the author examines the evolution of the legal approaches of the United Nations to international peacekeeping operations, considering the changes in their content in recent decades. The author explores the coupling between the peacekeeping mechanisms of the UN and regional organizations. The main object of the study is the peacekeeping activity of the Collective Security Treaty Organization based on the relevant international treaty. The article is an attempt to assess the political capabilities of a regional organization to expand its influence in the world using formal legal research methods. Three possible formats of a peacekeeping operation based on the Agreement on Peacekeeping Activities of the CSTO are revealed by the author. First, a peacekeeping operation by decision of the Organization within the borders of its member states. Its parameters correspond to the traditional (first generation) peacekeeping missions. Secondly, a peacekeeping operation by decision of the UN Security Council. Its deployment requires a mandate of the international community to endow the CSTO, which allows the implementation of multidimensional (second generation) peacekeeping operation by the forces of a regional organization. The third format of the CSTO peacekeeping operations is the participation of the CSTO in UN peacekeeping operations. The necessary legal framework is established by the recent Protocol on Amendments to the Agreement on the Peacekeeping Activities of the CSTO. The Organization is to endow one of the member states with the mandate to apply its multinational (consolidated) peacekeeping forces to the UN Peacekeeping Capability Readiness System. Thus applied CSTO peacekeeping forces can be involved in solving tasks during the UN peacekeeping operations under the CSTO flag. Based on the analysis of the legal framework for interaction between the United Nations and regional organizations in the field of peacekeeping, the author concludes that the potential for regional organizations to independently conduct multidimensional peacekeeping missions without direct violating state sovereignty or the UN Security Council mandate is significantly limited. The main opportunity for the collective use of the CSTO peacekeeping potential lies in its involvement in UN peacekeeping operations based on the approaches applied within the UN system to the organization of international peacekeeping activities.

Drivers of Chaos in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo Warfare

Eastern DRC is seriously affected by a protracted warfare involving illicit exploitation of natural resources, corruption, humanitarian crisis and terrorism carried out by armed groups including the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) and the Movement of 23 March (M23). According to DRC government, M23 is a terrorist group supported by Rwanda Defence Forces (RDF). Invasion and terrorism drive the war and the chaos. For Rwanda, fighting and chaos derive from ethnic conflicts over land, citizenship, local political power, and state failures. To many observers, ongoing violence and fighting are driven by rent seeking by Congolese military commanders, lack of State authority, distorted rule of law at both national and local levels, the abuse of public office for private gain (corruption), failed defence/security and justice sector reforms, undisciplined civilian armed and unarmed combatants, warlords and opportunist warmongers. Overall, state failures combined with globalized war diseconomy as conducted by multinational companies, failed multiparty system regarding democratic governance system drive ongoing chaos and armed violence, beyond government control and defence capabilities, despite peace agreements and the involvement of international and regional peace peacekeeping initiatives. Our analysis suggests that the war strategy being used resembles to what McKew refers to as the Gerasimov Doctrine, a chaos theory of political warfare which is used by Russia in Ukraine war. It is a silent total warfare combining politics and war activities with the objective of weakening, controlling and submitting an enemy by influencing its domestic politics and security. It creates a chaotic environment as a result of Clausewitzian friction. Hence, the search for sustainable peace and political stability needs to address factors which drive and sustain the chaos. Such strategic change requires top leadership involvement at the Head of State level, in his capacity of commander in chief of the armed forces. It is a matter of rebuilding the State, transforming non-state forces into a professional military and inducing few innovations into the defence reform process. Such innovations will include establishing territorial armies in eastern provinces where armed groups and foreign forces take advantage of State weaknesses to exploit resources and abuse local defenceless populations.

СТРАНЫ ЗАПАДА И БОРЬБА С УГРОЗАМИ НЕСТАБИЛЬНОСТИ В АЗИИ И АФРИКЕ: ТЕОРЕТИКО-ПРАКТИЧЕСКИЕ АСПЕКТЫ

Against the backdrop of increasing confrontation with a number of non-Western powers, nonclassical threats projected from armed conflict zones remain an urgent problem for the countries of the «collective West». The article examines the peculiarities of the Euro-Atlantic community’s approach to the use of political and military tools in the zones of armed conflicts in Asia and Africa. Methodologically, the article aims to deepen the provisions of conflict resolution theory as applied to armed conflicts. It shows the partial displacement of NATO and the EU member states from a position of subjects in the fight against threats of instability into objects for their projection in the early 2000 s and mid-2010 s, and analyzes the possibility of recurrence of this situation in the 2020 s. Three main stages of the settlement are distinguished, with a demonstration of opportunities for external participants in each of them. In the first stage, the main tasks are to secure a ceasefire, reconcile moderate pro-government and opposition forces, and critically weaken terrorist groups, which, depending on their strength, requires the choice of one or another form of forceful counteraction. In the second stage, the most important task is the implementation of agreements, including the deployment of international peacekeeping forces and security sector reform in the country of conflict origin. The third stage is to place the main burden of implementing the settlement on the authorities of the country of origin, its armed forces and law enforcement agencies, i.e. to «nationalize» the process. The «bottlenecks» in the actions of the countries of the «collective West» are noted - both of an internal (for the territory where the settlement takes place), military and foreign policy nature. Particular attention in this context is paid to the danger of refusing to build cooperative security schemes with non-Western powers.

PENGLIBATAN NEGARA-NEGARA ISLAM DALAM MISI PENGAMAN ANTARABANGSA ISLAMIC COUNTRIES PARTICIPATION IN INTERNATIONAL PEACEKEEPING MISSION

International peacekeeping mission is an important mechanism in the aspect of contemporary international conflict management. Since its first implementation by United Nations (UN) wayback in 1948, it attracted interest and participation from many countries in the organization. This includes the Islamic countries. Since the end of the Cold War era in the late 1980s, Islamic countries emerged as among the leading participant and troop contributor to international peacekeeping mission especially the mission organized by the UN. Half of the top-ten troop contributors to the current UN mission today are the Islamic countries such as Bangladesh, Pakistan, Egypt, Indonesia and Ghana. Even though Islamic countries had been contributing actively in numerous UN missions, nothing much were known about it. This article discussed in brief about the scenario of Islamic countries participation in international peacekeeping mission by referring to the mission organized by the UN and non-UN organizations since its early years to the present time. The approach use in this article are historical analysis and content analysis. This article concluded that, firstly, this scenario served as an evidence of Islamic countries un-ending support to the UN as a world governing body; secondly, national interest and not religious interest seems to be the primary driving factor of Islamic countries participation in peacekeeping; and finally, while Islamic countries continued its active participation in this areas of contribution, it nevertheless had to familiarize itself with the impacts and challenges that it currently faced which maybe will limited its noble effort to continue its support to international peacekeeping mission in the near future.

Medical Support of the Sinai Multinational Force and Observers: An Update, 2020.

ABSTRACTThe Multinational Force and Observers in Sinai is a 13-nation international peacekeeping organization with the mission to implement the security provisions of the 1979 Egyptian–Israeli Treaty of Peace and continues today after approximately four decades. Despite not having significant changes to its core mission of force health protection, the medical team has recently evolved to face several challenges, with a coronavirus pandemic and a fatal helicopter crash. This article describes the medical challenges and experiences of the medical team from August 2019 to December 2020, highlighting changes from previous years. This article also updates three previous articles on the subject published in Military Medicine in 1983, 1991, and 2003.

Международное миротворчество и уголовное правосудие ООН: политико-правовая корреляция и подобие

The article identifies and reveals objective political and legal correlations between international peacekeeping activities and international criminal justice, which allows positioning the latter as the final phase of the UN peacekeeping practice. The need to take into acco unt such correlation in domestic peacekeeping is substantiated on the basis of lobbying in the world for the perception of such practice of Russia from the angle of reconciliation of the conflicting parties; geopolitical obstacle to the implementation of any form of genocide; ensuring international peace and security. The need is substantiated to increase the international significance of our country using unconventional foreign policy approaches and technologies in the interests of systematically getting ahead of Russia’s geopolitical competitors in the international political, legal, and peacekeeping sphere.

Pápai követek helye és szerepe az egyház békemissziójában az új típusú biztonsági kihívások fényében

A katolikus egyház egyedülálló lehetőségekkel rendelkezik a nemzetközi válságkezelés és a béke előmozdítása területén. A katolikus egyház, amellett, hogy vallási közösség a Szentszék a nemzetközi jog alanya. A jelenlegi pápa igyekszik az egész dikaszteriális rendszert úgy poziciónálni, hogy a béketeremtésnek eleget tudjon tenni. A dolog természete okán, ebben a misszióban a pápai követek és a szentszéki diplomáciai missziók eminens módon vesznek részt. Különösen nagy szerep jut a válságövezetekben és a nemzetközi szervezetekben tevékenykedő diplomatáknak. Az Egyházi Törvénykönyv csak röviden mutatja be és főképp jogi szempontból a pápai követek kánoni helyzetét. A CIC emellett a klasszikus felosztási rendszert követi: a követek részegyházak és az országok irányába való feladatairól beszél. A békemisszió azonban az egész követi küldetést átjárja, a jogi megközelítésnél sokkal összetettebb, ugyanakkor nagyon izgalmas sokrétű tevékenység. Erre a sokszínűségre mutat rá ez a tanulmány.

Nigeria Police in International Peacekeeping Operations and its Impact on Domestic Policing

Nigeria Police in International Peacekeeping Operations and its Impact on Domestic Policing

Peacekeeping Operations in Africa: Liberian Lessons, a Platform for Deepening Future UN Peacekeeping Engagements.

Purpose: In terms of UN peacekeeping deployments, the African region has received the most, just as it has contributed the most in terms of military personnel. The Liberian UN-ECOWAS joint peace operations are acknowledged by many as one of the most successful, globally. The study argues that experiences from these operations can enrich this global effort. Hence, the study sought to establish lessons from the operations that could guide future peacekeeping operations. 
 Methodology: The study adopted a research approach that was analytical, descriptive, legal, historical and sociological; where data was mainly gathered from secondary and tertiary sources. To this end, scholarly books, edited works, articles and periodicals (duly acknowledged in the reference list) within the study area of international peacekeeping and the Liberian Civil War, were reviewed. Policy and legal documents by the United Nations (UN) and the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), media stories, reports from non-governmental organizations, research reports and reports from the Liberian government in relation to the multi-functional peacekeeping operations in that country; were not left out when data was gathered for this write-up. Additionally, in terms of secondary sources, dictionaries, bibliographies, encyclopedia, databases, abstracts and indexing sources were used. 
 Findings: Main findings were that the joint operations brought lasting peace to Liberia and that lessons from those experiences have the potential of guiding future peacekeeping operations across the globe.
 Unique contribution to theory, practice and policy: The study which is useful for academic, policy-formulation and implementation purposes, recommends: that the UN Security Council institutes prompt, appropriate and adequately funded interventions that have clear, effective and purposeful mandates at the start of conflicts; ‘spoilers’, ‘trouble makers’ and warlords should be heavily sanctioned; and effective coordinative measures be put in place by the UN so as to regulate activities of Non-UN peacekeeping actors.

Procesuiranje u predmetu Radovan Karadžić – ICTY IT-95-5/18

The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia has filed an Indictment (originally July 25, 1995, and an operational Indictment on October 19, 2009) against Radovan Karadzic, the former President of Republika Srpska and Commander-in-Chief of the Army of Republika Srpska. After many years of hiding in Serbia, Karadzic was arrested on July 21, 2008, and transferred to the ICTY on July 30 of that year. The trial began on 26 October 2009. Radovan Karadzic is charged for genocide (Counts 1 and 2); crimes against humanity: persecution (count 3), extermination (count 4), murder (count 5), deportation (count 7), inhumane acts - forcible transfer (count 8); and violations of the laws or customs of war: murder (count 6), terrorism (count 9), unlawful attacks on civilians (count 10), hostage-taking (count 11). Radovan Karadzic has been charged with individual criminal responsibility in accordance with Rule 7 (1) of the Statute of the International Tribunal through his participation in several joint criminal enterprises (JCEs). According to the Indictment, no later than October 1991 to November 30, 1995, Karadzic participated in a JCE aimed at the permanent removal of Bosniaks and Croats from certain areas of Bosnia and Herzegovina; from April 1992 to November 1995, he participated in the JCE to launch and conduct a campaign of sniping and shelling of the civilian population of Sarajevo, aimed at spreading terror among the civilian population; from July 1995 until 1 November 1995, he participated in the JCE of the elimination of Bosniaks in Srebrenica, by killing men and boys, as well as forcibly expelling women, children and the elderly from the area; and for participated in the JCE of taking members of the United Nations hostage during May and June 1995. Pursuant to Article 7 (3) of the Statute, the Indictment charges him with superior responsibility because he knew or had reason to know that forces under his effective control were being prepared to commit crimes or have already committed them, and has not taken measures to prevent the commission of crimes or to punish the perpetrators of those crimes. On June 11, 2012, Karadzic filed a motion for acquittal on all counts of the Indictment. Pursuant to Rule 98bis, on 28 June 2012, the Trial Chamber rendered a Decision dismissing the motion for acquittal on ten counts of the Indictment, but acquitted Count 1 of the Indictment relating to genocide committed in certain municipalities of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bratunac, Foca, Kljuc, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Vlasenica and Zvornik. This count of the Indictment alleges that Karadzic is responsible for the genocide as a superior, and that in agreement with others he committed, planned, instigated, ordered and/or aided and abetted the genocide. Following the Prosecution's appeal against the decision to exclude Count 1 from the Indictment, on 11 July 2013 the Appeals Chamber quashed the Trial Chamber's decision and returned Count 1 of the Indictment charging Karadzic with genocide in the said municipalities, and the proceedings continued before the Trial Chamber. The Trial Chamber's verdict against Radovan Karadzic was handed down on March 24, 2016, sentencing him to 40 years in prison for genocide, crimes against humanity, and violations of the laws or customs of war. In 6,073 paragraphs is explained the role of the RS Army, as well as police structures, territorial defense, and regional and municipal authorities and other participants in joint criminal enterprises. The forms and methods of committing crimes committed in the municipalities of Bijeljina, Bratunac, Brčko, Foča, Rogatica, Sokolac, Višegrad, Vlasenica and Zvornik in eastern Bosnia are described; Banja Luka, Bosanski Novi, Ključ, Prijedor and Sanski Most in the Autonomous Region of Krajina (“ARK”); Hadžići, Ilidža, Novi Grad, Novo Sarajevo, Pale and Vogošća in the area of Sarajevo, and precise ways of carrying out a comprehensive joint criminal enterprise, but also joint criminal enterprises related to Srebrenica (genocide), Sarajevo (terrorizing citizens with sniper fire and shelling), and hostage-taking (UNPROFOR international peacekeepers). The first-instance verdict found Karadzic guilty of 10 of the 11 counts in the indictment. Both the Prosecution and the Defense for the Accused appealed the Trial Chamber's judgment, and the second-instance proceedings continued. On March 20, 2019, the Appeals Chamber issued a final verdict sentencing Radovan Karadžić to life imprisonment. The verdict found him guilty of persecution from a territory that Bosnian Serbs considered to be claiming the right, sniping and shelling of Sarajevo, taking UNPROFOR members hostage and genocide in Srebrenica. Both Trial and Appeals Chambers acquitted Karadzic of genocide committed in seven Bosnian municipalities (Bratunac, Foca, Kljuc, Prijedor, Sanski Most, Vlasenica and Zvornik) committed in 1992.

Turkey’s contribution to international policing

ABSTRACT The UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations has undergone significant changes in its organisation since 1948. A new global environment established by the end of Cold War, elevated the Police Division to a more pronounced role in international peace as an essential pillar of UN peacekeeping missions. Nonetheless, despite the increased role of police in international missions, research on police contributions to peacekeeping remains limited. This article addresses this gap in literature by highlighting the case of Turkey’s contribution to UN international police peacekeeping missions. The article confirms empirically that the Turkish police contribution has increased since the 2000s by relying on quantitative data offered by the TUBAKOV dataset designed to collect data on international peacekeeping missions of Turkey. The paper contends that, besides global trends, the increased participation of Turkey in UN-led missions reflects its internal political dynamics. First, under the JDP rule, Turkey’s Cold War era subtle foreign policy was transformed to a proactive policy in global politics. Second, since the 2000s, the transformation of civil–military relations has ended the system of military tutelage, and this has had a considerable impact on foreign policy. Civilian authority, by abolishing military dominance, has become the primary actor in foreign policy decision-making.

Re-thinking governance and accountability of police and policing: David Bayley’s contributions to the debates

ABSTRACT As a political scientist, David Bayley brought a very particular perspective to debates about police governance and accountability that have recently flared up again in the United States of America following the killing of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter and “Defund the Police” campaigns that it energised. Throughout his 65-year career as the world’s leading international comparative policing scholar, Bayley wrote and spoke publicly about police governance and accountability in his native U.S.A. and many other countries around the world, as well as how it pertained to international post-conflict peace-keeping operations. In this article, I consider the proposals for reform of police governance and accountability that have been advanced following George Floyd’s death, in light of Bayley’s lifelong thoughts and proposals on this topic, culminating with his last book (which I was privileged to have co-authored with him), Governing the Police: Experience in Six Democracies.

BRICS in International Legal Space: Humanitarian Imperatives of International Security

The article is devoted to the examination of the formation of new vectors for international relations development within the global format of cooperation. The establishment and unification of BRICS in the international legal sphere through a wide range of common interests and views of its members towards issues facing the modern world reflect objective tendencies of world development to the formation of amultipolar international relations system and determination of particular large country actors of broad integration and having many dimensions. The authors reveal particular characteristics of the international-legal status of BRICS, which make it possible to have an effective impact on challenges facing the modern world. The legal BRICS status differs crucially from traditional legal approaches to international organizations. Acting as a special subject of world politics, creating more trusted interaction conditions, BRICS focuses its attention on the alternative world order principles within the new model of global relations. Such a format of multilateral cooperation, as well as more trusted and additional mechanisms of international interaction, gives the members an opportunity to demonstrate their geopolitical and geoeconomic world significance, and in addition their demanded humanitarian role, which, as the analysis of the mentioned actor demonstrates, is aimed at forming its own interaction model. The logic of the BRICS agenda extension to the level of an important global management system element demonstrates the goal in the field of action and, accordingly, intensive progress of humanitarian imperatives. For these humanitarian imperatives, the issues of international peacekeeping, security, protection, encouraging human rights and providing stable development are an objective necessity, especially for active demonstration of the members’ viewpoints on the international scene. For understanding the process of the alignment of international security humanitarian imperatives it is necessary to study the existing objective needs in conjunction with each country, member of BRICS.

Changes in International Security Environment and Paradigm Shifts in Overseas Dispatch of Korean Troops:

After being admitted to the United Nation (UN) in September 1991, South Korea began dispatching units of engineers on Peacekeeping Operation (PKO) to Somalia in 1994. Since then, it has been involved in promoting national interests and international peacekeeping operations such as armistice monitoring, reconstruction and disaster relief activities by dispatching troops and individuals to conflict zones around the world. In addition, starting with the dispatch of the Zaytun Division to Iraq, South Korean troops have experienced new battlefield environments through Multi-national Force Peace Operation (MNF PO) and secured momentum for improving their ability to carry out independent operations and strengthening the capacity to perform combined operations with the allies through the dispatch of such troops as the Akh Unit to non-conflict zones for Defense Cooperation Activities (DCA). In particular, with changes in the international security environment, where the number of non-traditional security threats such as international terrorism increases in addition to disputes between countries in the global era, the role of the Cheonghae Unit in ensuring the safety of its people from piracy, performing joint maritime operations with major countries and contributing to international maritime peace and security in the face of conflicts between the US and Iran has been highlighted again. Therefore, in the future, flexible approaches are needed for the diversification of overseas dispatch to perform additional missions in the temporarily expanded operation areas as in the dispatch of the Cheonghae Unit, a multi-national force. In this regard, this paper proposes major tasks and paradigm shifts for overseas dispatches in consideration of the expansion of roles and missions of multi-national forces such as PKO and Cheonghae Unit in the changing international security environment, and the current national defense and security environment characterized by reductions in the armed forces due to low birthrates. In the light of national defense and security environment at home and abroad in the era of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, it is desirable to actively review the diversification of dispatching Korean troops, such as expanding tech-oriented troop contribution, breaking away from the conventional engineer-oriented dispatch.

A Bumpy Ride: China’s Search to Be a Responsible Power

Summary Recent years have seen China trying to play the role of a responsible power. It has made great efforts in this regard, including actively participating in international peacekeeping operations, collaborating with other countries to deal with the climate change and trying to help in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic. However, China’s efforts have met with stiff resistance from the West, especially from the Donald Trump-led United States. How does one explain this turn of events? This essay argues that the speed of China’s rise; the Western perception of China’s domestic development; the failure to address domestic problems on the part of some major Western countries, especially the United States; and the role that the Trump administration played provide important clues to such a development.

Diplomatic Settlement Projects of the “Afghan Issue” (1980–1981)

The Soviet war in Afghanistan lasted for over nine years, from December 1979 to February 1989. The Afghan conflict became the largest military campaign of the Cold War. The continuing war in Afghanistan actually began to threaten peace and stability not only in Central Asia but in the whole world. It became a dead end for the occupiers, too. The international community perceived Soviet aggression as a significant threat to international peace and security. In the early 1980s the search for a diplomatic settlement to the situation around Afghanistan began. The purpose of the article is to investigate the ways of diplomatic settlement of the “Afghan issue” in 1980—1981 (before the Geneva Peace Talks) on the basis of official documents of the United Nations and the US National Security Archive. At the core of the research methodology there are typological, comparative аnd problem-chronological methods. In 1980–1981 a number of countries and international organizations initiated projects for a diplomatic settlement of the Afghan conflict. These countries were the following: the United States, Great Britain, France, Pakistan and others. The United Kingdom proposed a two-stage international conference to discuss the ending of foreign interference in Afghanistan and withdrawing foreign troops. According to the plan proposed by Pakistan, Soviet troops were to leave the DRA and be replaced by “international peacekeepers”. Valéry Giscard d’Estaing (the President of France) proposed to convene an international conference with the participation of countries suspected of interfering in the internal affairs of the DRA in order to develop commitments on non-interference and refusal to supply weapons to Afghanistan. These projects were rejected by the USSR and the DRA. They argued that the official government of Afghanistan had not been invited to the proposed international conferences. The world community did not recognize the official government of Afghanistan. The authority of the USSR in the international arena fell significantly. Thus, the main reason for the delay in the negotiation process was the Soviet leadership’s adherence to the force line of conduct in relation to Afghanistan and the transfer of all responsibility for the Afghan crisis to its ideological opponents in the Cold War.

МІЖНАРОДНІ ВІДНОСИНИ МІЖ КРАЇНАМИ ЛЮБЛІНСЬКОГО ТРИКУТНИКА – НОВИЙ ФОРМАТ СПІВПРАЦІ КРІЗЬ ПРИЗМУ ІСТОРИЧНОГО МИНУЛОГО

The article examines the historical origins and further cooperation of the Lublin Triangle countries - Ukraine, Poland and Lithuania – Central and Eastern Europe, the history of which reflects the development of this region in the east of this part of the world. Combined by geographical proximity, foreign policy threats and a common socio-cultural tradition, they have a complex history of development and coexistence. The agreements made during a certain period of time are analyzed, conclusions are made. Opportunities have been identified for strengthening cooperation between the OSCE, the European Union, the Council of Europe, NATO and the Eastern Partnership countries. The possibility of joining the Republic of Belarus to a new format of relations and turning the triangle into a square for further joint cooperation in the direction of expanding opportunities in the field of energy, defense, cultural and social spheres was considered. The youth initiative on creation of a platform for interaction of youth of Ukraine with youth of Lithuania and Poland for the purpose of expansion of cultural, social and educational communications and an exchange of experience for creation of joint projects is considered. The future development of states and interstate initiatives depends on the active work of young people, the creation of the youth wing of the Lublin Triangle is a logical continuation of the interstate initiative, which will not only ensure youth participation in social and political life, but also positively affect Ukrainian-Polish-Lithuanian relations. thanks to youth diplomacy, will promote the development of European integration processes in Ukraine. An important initiative within the Lublin Triangle was the creation of a Lithuanian-Polish-Ukrainian brigade – LitPolUkrBrig, which provides for international peacekeeping and security operations under the auspices of the UN, EU, NATO and other international security organizations. Conclusions are made on the advantages and disadvantages of countries' participation in the new format of relations between the countries of the Lublin Triangle.

Gender sidestreaming? Analysing gender mainstreaming in national militaries and international peacekeeping

AbstractTwenty years after the passing of Resolution 1325, the participation of women as military personnel in peacekeeping operations remains limited. Women currently comprise just under five per cent of military personnel in UN peacekeeping missions, and the UN consistently calls for more. We contend the low numbers of female military personnel in peacekeeping reflects a lack of gender mainstreaming in national militaries globally. This article introduces the problem of sidestreaming, the practice, deliberate or unintentional, of sidelining women and relegating them to specialised spaces in international peace and security while attempting gender mainstreaming or increased gender integration. Drawing on empirical evidence from national militaries we show how and where sidestreaming occurs with the result being that women remain clustered in gendered and low-status spaces in national militaries and in specialised spaces in peacekeeping operations. This has a negative effect on retention and recruitment contributing to the low numbers of female peacekeepers in UN peace operations. We conclude that gender mainstreaming in its fullest sense will require military reform that decouples violence and combat skills from masculinity and inclusive research strategies that engage men as well as women.

EXPERIENCE OF BALKAN COUNTRIES ON TERRITORY INTEGRATION

The article analyzes the experience of the Balkan countries in de-occupation and reintegration of territories. Cases of conflicts in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Macedonia (Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia in 1993–2019, North Macedonia since 2019) are being studied. The analysis is based on a study of all stages of conflict resolution.
 The article examines the sequence of key aspects of the settlement. Consideration of all stages of armed conflicts in the Balkan region has shown that international peace-keeping missions, with military and civilian components, play a significant role. The participation of various international organizations (UN, NATO, EU) and countries (USA) and in resolving those conflicts and further integration also had a decisive influence.
 The reintegration processes in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia were based on peace agreements, as well as the full restoration of border and territory controlling. The next stage was to ensure demilitarization and disarmament. The fully fledged process of integration also included law enforcement reform, election preparation and conduct. The issues of post-war justice, punishment for war crimes and mass human rights violations were among the top priorities. In the implementation of all these reintegration measures, international organizations were involved, which actively provided assistance and performed a monitoring function.
 Among the necessary conditions for de-occupation and peaceful reintegration are the following: consolidation and consistency of the positions of the political and military leadership, the presence of a powerful army, implementation of sanctions, economic and military-political pressure on the aggressor side, demilitarization and control of the territory, justice and amnesty with fixed frameworks.
 The prospect of further research is that valuable experience with conflict resolution settlement and reintegration contains effective mechanisms that can be adapted in the case of Ukraine.

The Evolution of Peacekeeping Operations : Interview with Professor Alexander I. Nikitin

Professor Dr. Alexander I. Nikitin is a leading Russian IR scholar, an expert on problems of international security, international conflicts, peacekeeping operations, activities of international organizations. Professor of the Political Sciences Department at MGIMO University, Director of the MGIMO Center for Euro-Atlantic Security of the Institute for International Studies, Director of the Center for Political and International Studies, Professor of the State Management Department of the Lomonosov Moscow State University, Professor of the Public Policy Department of the Research University - Higher School of Economics, President Emeritus of the Russian Political Science Association (RPSA) and Chairman of the RPSA International Cooperation Council. Subject area: International Security, Peacekeeping, Conflict Resolution, International Relations, NATO Policy and Russia - NATO Relations, International Organizations (UN, OSCE, NATO, CSTO, SCO), Nuclear Policy and Non-Proliferation, Regulation of Private Military and Security Companies, Civil-Military Relations. Born in 1958, graduated from the Department of Philosophy of Moscow State University in 1979. PhD (International Relations) in 1983 and 2000. Research work for 10 years (1979-1989) in the USA and Canada Studies Institute (Senior Research Fellow, Head of Section). From 1989 to the present day Dr. Nikitin has been teaching in the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (from 1996 to the present day - Professor of the Department of Political Sciences). From 2004 to the present day - Director of the Center for Euro-Atlantic Security of the Institute for International Studies at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations. Center specializes in research in the spheres of international security and international relations. In his interview Professor Dr. Alexander I. Nikitin describes the current state of international peacekeeping, current trends and characteristics of conflicts and their impact on international relations. Professor Nikitin assesses Russias participation in peacekeeping operations within the UN and other formats of international cooperation.