Columbia International Affairs Online: Working Papers

CIAO DATE: 12/2012

UN Peacekeeping: The Next Five Years

Richard Gowan, Megan Gleason

September 2012

Center on International Cooperation

Abstract

This paper, commissioned by the Permanent Mission of Denmark to the United Nations, analyzes current trends in United Nations peacekeeping and makes predictions about the development of UN operations over the next five years (to 2017). It covers (i) the changing global context for UN operations and efforts to enhance the organization‟s performance over the last five years; (ii) trends in troop and police contributions; (iii) projections about potential demand for UN forces in various regions, especially the Middle East and Africa, in the next five years and (iv) suggestions about the types of contributions European countries such as Denmark can make to reinforce UN missions in this period.