CIAO DATE: 08/2009
June 2008
The Geneva Centre for Security Policy
Peace operations have an important role to play in fighting organised crime for two reasons:
1) Organised crime can act as a significant peace spoiler by undermining peace processes and endangering human security following conflict and in fragile states. The criminalised components of conflict help to sustain the material basis for war-fighting and reduce the incentives for a turn towards peace. Organised crime operating in conflict situations thus creates a more challenging operational environment for peace operations and peace processes.
2) Peace operations are a key tool through which the international community deals with areas affected by state fragility and armed conflict, both of which are conducive to transnational organised crime that poses a threat to stability and security further afield.
Given their limited mandates and resources, peace operations may at best be able to adopt a ‘spoiler management' approach towards organised crime.
Resource link: Peace Operations and Organised Crime [PDF] - 5.0M