About UN Peacekeeping
The United Nations was founded in 1945 with a singular mission: to keep "succeeding generations from the scourge of war." To that end, the UN deployed its first peacekeeping mission in 1948. In 1992, due to an increase in the number of peacekeeping missions, the UN established the coordinating organization, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO).
Today, the DPKO oversees the second largest military deployment around the world. UN peacekeepers have engaged in more than 60 field missions, each mission authorized with the consent of the United States and other UN Member States.
By the numbers
- 15 active UN peace operations
- More than 120,000 personnel deployed
- Over 200 million people served by peacekeepers every day
The range of peacekeeping activities is staggering, from stabilizing regional conflicts, to facilitating free and fair elections, to protecting civilians during humanitarian crises. UN peacekeeping supports global and national security at a fraction of the cost of other military forces. In fact, UN peacekeeping missions operate on less than one percent of what the nations of the world spend on their respective military forces.
For its investment, the United States enjoys great benefits from the UN peacekeeping.
- UN peacekeeping shares the burden of international security by drawing upon all its members to provide collective security.
- UN peacekeepers succeed in restoring stability in 70 percent of the nations in which they serve.
- UN peacekeeping prevents the rise of failed states and the safe havens for terrorists they contain.
As the world grows more interdependent, global conflict will affect our own national security more and more. Together, the United States and the United Nations can overcome today and tomorrow's global challenges.
Media Contact
Rebecca Einhorn
(202) 887-9040
reinhorn@unfoundation.org
