Canada and Peace Support Operations

Peacekeeping is an important aspect of Canada's national heritage and a reflection of our fundamental beliefs. It is a dynamic concept that responds to changes in the international environment in order to continue to develop security for people affected by war. Canada builds on our established peacekeeping tradition to make strong and imaginative contributions to international peace and security.

Peacekeeping is also a significant component of Canada's foreign policy and our contribution to the multilateral security system. Fifty years of experience in peacekeeping and participation in an overwhelming majority of peacekeeping missions mandated by the United Nations Security Council has established an international reputation for Canada.

Although the United Nations deployed some observer missions in its early years, the term "peacekeeping" did not enter popular use until 1956. The eruption of conflict in the Middle East, specifically between Egypt and Israel, prompted Lester B. Pearson, then Canadian Secretary of State for External Affairs and later Prime Minister of Canada, to propose the deployment of an international peace force under the UN flag. Since that time there have been over 50 United Nations peacekeeping missions. Each mission has faced a variety of challenges and, over time and as a result of these different experiences, the concept of peacekeeping has evolved.

Peacekeeping has traditionally been a primarily military activity but Canadian involvement in international peace support operations has expanded in response to the complex emergencies that we now face. Canadian peace support efforts include such diverse groups as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and their provincial and municipal partners, Elections Canada and Corrections Services Canada, and takes place not just through the United Nations but also through regional forums such as the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the Organisation of African Unity (OAU).

The changing face of peace support operations

The complexity of peace support operations has increased dramatically since the end of the Cold War. There are:

More missions: The end of the Cold War signaled a new chapter of international cooperation at the United Nations. Between 1991 and the end of 1996, 24 new peacekeeping missions were set up - six more than the total established during the preceding 43 years. At the peak of UN activity in the mid-1990s, there were nearly 80,000 UN peacekeepers deployed around the globe.

More intra-state conflicts: Traditional peacekeeping took place between states in order to monitor a peace treaty upon which all parties had agreed. Often peacekeepers patrolled contested borders. Since the end of the Cold War conflicts have increasingly been internal. This means that parties are often non-governmental actors: an important part of any peace process is identifying who should be involved in negotiations. Also, there is no clear area of conflict, and fighting is often spread through a country's entire territory. Increasingly, the result of such conflicts is that the international community is asked to create the elementary structures of peace and security and take on responsibilities that used to be the internal affairs of the states involved.

More actors: Conflict resolution is no longer the exclusive purview of the United Nations. Regional organizations such as NATO, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, and the Organization for African Unity are also involved. In addition, a wide range of other civil and NGO organizations play key roles in PSO's.

More diverse skills: In order to respond to the more complex crises which we now face, we have begun to deploy personnel with more varied skills. Military personnel now work with police and other experts to develop security in conflict-affected societies. These experts may include regional and municipal administrators; judges and prosecutors to develop judiciaries and run courts; media, health, tax and social policy advisors; child protection experts; facilitators and mediators; and even people to manage basic infrastructure, such as sewage treatment plants or railways.

Canadian peacekeeping policy has developed in a variety of new directions to keep pace with these changing conditions. This site illustrates how peace support operations are now carried out and how Canada has responded to these challenges.