U.S. Support to Peacekeeping Operations

  • Published
  • By SOUTHCOM

TOPIC SPONSOR: SOUTHCOM

The United States has a long history of financial support to United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, but is it the right time for the U.S. to contribute logistical enablers like air mobility (fixed wing and rotary wing), engineering, line and short-haul motor transportation, medical, and signals communication?

Although the largest financial contributor to UN PKO, the USA does not provide more than a handful of Military Observers and Military Experts on Mission to support field missions. The U.S. has incredible logistical capabilities that are critical enablers for UN PKO missions and could fill the existing gaps in important PKO missions in Africa. There are risks for both the U.S. and UN that need to be addressed before the U.S. provides such assets from C2 relationships to reimbursements to casualties and the tradeoffs between U.S. capabilities and local perceptions of U.S. presence in field missions.