Recommendation 31

HM Government Acknowledged

Agree. 43. HMG agrees that UN peacekeeping remains an indispensable tool for peace and agrees with the need for UN peacekeeping reform as part of the UN80 process. HMG’s overarching reform objective is for peacekeeping mission planning to take a whole-of-UN perspective and approach, allowing peace operations to focus on security and political tasks where they have a comparative advantage, while development or humanitarian actors lead complementary work to avoid duplication. Throughout UN80 the UK is also advocating for enhanced efficiencies and reduction in overlap of UN peacekeeping structures, including within the Department of Peace Operations (DPO) and the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (DPPA). The role of the UN Secretary General’s good offices remains critical, especially through the Secretary-General’s own platform as a global mediator-in-chief. Additional HMG reform priorities are focussed on ensuring peacekeeping operations are tailored to local contexts adapt as situations change, and are improved through appropriate training and equipment and by ensuring performance and conduct standards are upheld. 44. HMG recognises the importance and complimentary nature of peacekeeping and peacebuilding activity. HMG cannot divert funding from UN peacekeeping to UN peacebuilding activity as UN peacekeeping funding is non-discretionary and made via assessed UN contributions. The UK’s contribution for the 2025/26 UN Peacekeeping fiscal year (July to June) is $245m (4.7454% of the $5.16b overall peacekeeping budget). As a P5 member, the UK is the fifth largest contributor with the percentage of what each member state contributes agreed every three years. Instead, HMG engages closely with the UN Peacebuilding Support Office and the UK remains a top donor to the UN Peacebuilding Fund, investing a further £5.5 million this financial year. 45. HMG agrees with the importance of review and closure of UN peacekeeping structures when the right criteria are met, noting the UK is one of fifteen UN Security Council members. The UK tries to deliver value for money through the relevant UN committees, working with like-minded member states to achieve effective and efficient closures. HMG also agrees with the importance of evaluating peacekeeping mandates and mission effectiveness, HMG does so in several different ways. This includes SMAT (Strategic Mission Assessment Tool) visits to peacekeeping missions alongside consolidated advice from a variety of stakeholders such as embassies in host countries, the UK Mission in New York, the Ministry of Defence, former UN peacekeepers, and the contribution of UK Military Staff Officers into UN peace operations. 46. HMG appreciates the appeal of a unified UN Peace and security structure. For practical reasons, including the need to find global consensus on UN80 reform priorities, HMG is focussed on improving the coherence, efficiency and effectiveness of UN structures as set out above. This will enable the UN to return to its role as the world’s mediator and peacekeeper, alongside its conflict preventions mandate. 47. As penholder, the UK is active and engaged in matters pertaining to peacekeeping. This includes advocating for the UN’s unique legitimacy and comparative advantage in deploying multinational forces under the blue flag, with high standards in human rights, gender, and accountability; and cautioning against over-reliance on regional or coalition enforcement operations, which are not substitutes for UN peacekeeping. With respect to the UK’s penholdership of individual peacekeeping files, paragraph 33 (UNFICYP, Cyprus) provides a good example of UK success in maintaining longstanding UN Security Council unity. In this role the UK also continues to warn against the threat of roll-back on hard-won progress in key policy areas, including Women, Peace, and Security (WPS). As co-chairs of the Elsie Initiative Fund, we continue to advocate for the safeguarding of the WPS agenda throughout ongoing budget negotiations and within UN80 reform discussions.