United Nations Peacekeeping and the Developing World (Gabriel Amvane)

Even if it was not expressly provided for in the UN Charter, peacekeeping has become one of the main activities of the United Nations. The majority of UN peacekeeping operations are deployed in the developing world (except UNFICYP in Cyprus), where armed conflicts are more likely to take place. Meanwhile, almost all of the Troop Contributing Countries are from the Global South, which makes it seem as though peacekeeping is led by developing countries for developing countries. However, the reality shows that even if developing countries deploy the most important part of UN personnel in peacekeeping operations, developed countries from the Western world are the ones who mainly finance these operations. In a phrase, «poor nations fight, rich nations pay ». This contribution analyses the relationship that subsequently arises between both sides, in terms of the decision-making process. It also examines the role and the position of the Global South in this process as three of the five permanent members of the Security Council are from the Western world and are strongly involved in decision-making related to peacekeeping. Peacekeeping is executed in the developing world by developing countries, but is mainly decided on and paid for by developed Western countries. In this context, this article also questions whether and how the Global South could finally participate as a major actor in decision-making for issues relating to peace.

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