Definition
Peacekeeping forces are not mentioned in the UN Charter. Secretary-General Dag Hammarskjold in the 1960s joked that they were not allowed under "Chapter Six and a Half"- somewhere between the nonviolent dispute resolution called for in Chapter Six and the authorization of force provided for in Chapter Seven of the Charter. The Charter requires member states to place military forces at the disposal of the UN, but such forces were envisioned as being used in response to aggression. In practice, when the UN has authorized force to reverse aggression- as in the Gulf War in 1990- the forces involved has been national forces notunder UN command. The UN's own forces- borrowed from the armies of member states but under the flag and command of the UN- have been peacekeeping forces working to calm regional conflicts, playing a neutral role between warring forces. As Bosnia has demonstrated, however, such forces acting as neutrals do not succeed well in a situation where the Security Council has identified one side as the aggressor. The secretary-general assembles a peacekeeping force for each mission, usually from a few states totally uninvolved in the conflict, and puts it under a single commander. As of 1995 the UN maintained 70,000 troops from over seventy countries in 17 separate peacekeeping or observing missions, spanning five world regions. Also see this section on peacekeeping.
Peace-Keeping Operations - UN peace keeping home page with past and current info on peace keeping efforts. "Survey of UN Peace Keeping Operations" provides comprehensive table of current operations.
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UC Davis International Relations