Peacekeepers traditionally take up positions between hostile forces to supervise cease-fires and the withdrawal of opposing forces.

Initially, peacekeeping forces were deployed for two basic reasons:

to stop conflict or fighting

to create a situation for conflicting groups to seek peaceful solutions to their problems

The United Nations stresses two main types of peacekeeping: observation and military.

Observation

Under this program, the UN sends in qualified people to supervise or watch over a situation and provide reports to the UN so that the situation can be monitored and decisions made as to what steps are needed to resolve an issue. Sometimes, just the very presence of these observers is all that a nation needs to be able to resolve its own problems.

Senior Airman JoAnn S. Makinano / Public domain

Public Domain PV2 Andrew W. McGalliard

Military

This means that troops from neutral countries are sent to separate fighting groups and especially to protect innocent civilians caught in the middle of the battle.

Although these two types of interventions are the main focus for UN peacekeeping, such operations now involve much more. As the world has become more complex, the role of peacekeeping has evolved to include the following roles:

delivering humanitarian aid

distributing supplies to refugees

disarming weapons of mass destruction

repairing destroyed landscapes and habitat

supporting human rights

supervising elections and government systems

training police forces and judiciary

You may wonder what some of these missions have to do with peacekeeping. When disasters occur, regardless of their causes, a massive response of humanitarian aid is necessary. In some circumstances, the most efficient way to deliver this aid is through a military organization. In a nation with an unstable government, using the military may be the only way to ensure that the aid goes to those who need it. If people live in a state that is corrupt, they are often subjected to abuse.

Wenhan Sun / CC BY-SA

Peacekeeping forces are sometimes needed to ensure an orderly transition to a democratic government that protects the rights of its citizens. Peacekeeping operations are costly, and peacekeepers may lose their lives while fighting what some consider to be others' battles. The other side of this argument is that as global citizens in the pursuit of internationalism, we have a humanitarian obligation to those less fortunate. The greatest argument for maintaining peacekeeping operations, however, is to prevent a situation from escalating into a widespread conflict that may lead to a world war.