ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a cautious foresight into the near-future development of United Nation (UN) peacekeeping operations. It then the distant future where the (United Nations Security Council) UNSC moves towards more limited and more robust UN peacekeeping mandates. The chapter discusses the implications of a return of former troop contributors to UN peacekeeping on the UN's relative force composition and strength. In these operations, UN troops will take sides and, at times, operate without the consent of the main parties of conflict while faced with violent opposition to the UN's use of force. This will unfold in some of the most demanding operational environments in the world. Asian and African infantry forces, supported by small numbers of European peacekeepers equipped with niche capabilities, will be deployed in parallel or even jointly with regional organisations and influential countries. Finally, it discusses whether people are moving towards a further fragmentation of responsibilities in international conflict resolution.
