UN Peacekeepers:
UN peacekeepers and troops of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) have increased patrols near the site of last week’s deadly raid on internally displaced persons (IDPs) in northeast Ituri province.
- The UN peacekeeping mission in the DRC, known by its French acronym as MONUSCO, recently exchanged fire with members of the Cooperative for the Development of Congo (CODECO) militia.
- The clash occurred during an operation to cordon and search in the Uzi area of Ituri province.
- The Savo attack is the latest in a string of devastating raids by CODECO on sites for displaced people in Ituri, where ethnic tensions between the Hema and the Lendu communities have existed for years.
- While decisions about establishing, maintaining or expanding a peacekeeping operation are taken by the Security Council, the financing of UN Peacekeeping operations is the collective responsibility of all UN Member States.
- Every Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share towards peacekeeping. This is in accordance with the provisions of Article 17 of the Charter of the United Nations.
- The top 5 providers of assessed contributions to United Nations Peacekeeping operations for 2020-2021 are:
- United States.
- China.
- Japan.
- Germany.
- United Kingdom.
- United Nations Peacekeeping is a joint effort between the Department of Peace Operations and the Department of Operational Support.
- Every peacekeeping mission is authorized by the Security Council
- UN peacekeepers (often referred to as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets because of their light blue berets or helmets) can include soldiers, police officers, and civilian personnel.
- Peacekeeping forces are contributed by member states on a voluntary basis.
- Civilian staff of peace operations are international civil servants, recruited and deployed by the UN Secretariat.
- UN Peacekeeping is guided by three basic principles:
- Consent of the parties.
- Impartiality.
- Non-use of force except in self-defence and defence of the mandate.
