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The UN’s Zero Tolerance Policy, which bans all relationships between UN staff and locals, portrays all relationships as exploitative, fails to account for nuances in these relationships and does not acknowledge the agency of local women or communities. This study uses community-based qualitative data from eastern DRC that shares narratives on a wide variety of consensual relationships between peacekeepers and local women. Our paper uses a data-driven approach, including a post-colonial feminist lens, and ideas of structural agency to provide an expanded definition of agency that invites readers to re-examine their views of women in conflict settings. Finally, we provide clear recommendations for the UN and other international non-governmental agencies on policies related to sexual exploitation and abuse. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although wide-ranging in scope, a core principle embedded throughout the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples is the right to free, prior and informed consent (FPIC). Given the widespread nature of protracted struggles over land involving Indigenous peoples, some argue FPIC could provide a powerful tool to prevent and resolve land conflicts. Using a case study of the Indigenous Batwa in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, the paper examines the promises and perils of employing FPIC as a peacebuilding tool. Specifically, it contrasts two land-related conflicts involving the Batwa: (1) the Batwa's recent attempts to reclaim territories lost via the creation of the Kahuzi-Biega National Park and (2) the decade-long conflict pitting the Batwa and Luba people. In so doing, the analysis explores the role of the proposed 'Organic bill', which aims to recognise Indigenous peoples' right to FPIC. This serves to highlight both the limitations and potential dangers of adopting an Indigenous rights framework to resolve land conflict in certain political contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thrust of this paper concerns the case of the European Battlegroup (BG) non-deployment in late 2008, when the United Nations requested European military support for the United Nations Organisation Mission peacekeeping force in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). The argument is built on the fact that when, in official documents, the EU approaches the European security and ESDP/CSDP's military crisis management policy and interventions, it makes strong references to the United Nations and the UN Charter Chapter VII's mandate of restoring international peace and security. Such references make it seem that supporting the UN when it deals with threats and crises is a primary concern of the EU and the member states. These allusions lead to the main contention of this paper, that there is much ambivalence in these indications. The paper develops its argument from one key hypothesis; namely, that the non-deployment of a European BG in the DRC, at the end of 2008, constitutes a useful case study for detecting a number of ambiguities of the EU in respect of its declarations in the official documents establishing the European military crisis management intervention structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Millions have been killed in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Despite various mediation efforts and having one of the largest United Nations/African Union peacekeeping forces in the world, the carnage continues to claim more victims. What this paper argues is that the underlying war economy must be seen as the basis of the ongoing violence and only its eradication and replacement by a peace economy will there be any hope for sustainable peace both in the DRC and the broader Great Lakes Region. To this end, the paper provides a historical background to the conflict, and then proceeds to contextualize this economy within the war and peace economy literature. The intricacies in the war economy are then unravelled followed by certain policy recommendations to end the violence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The UN may sanction peacekeeping operations (POs) to neutralize armed groups and promote democratization. This research presents perceptions from beneficiaries of assistance related to POs and relations between local women/girls and peacekeepers within two post-colonial contexts: the DRC and Haiti. Using cross-sectional, mixed-methods data collected in Haiti (2017) and the DRC (2018), we performed a comparative secondary analysis to better understand similarities and differences by country and gender in how participants perceived peacekeepers. Congolese participants were more likely to perceive foreign UN personnel as 'able to offer financial support', compared to Haitian participants who were more likely to perceive the UN personnel as 'in a position of authority' and 'able to offer protection'. Overall response patterns indicated that both Haitian and Congolese perceived the peacekeeper as responsible for initiating interactions with local women/girls. However, some variations were noted: Congolese male participants were most likely to perceive UN personnel as the initiators of interactions with local women and girls, compared to Haitians and Congolese females, who were more likely to perceive local women and girls as the initiators. Our research presents a locally grounded understanding of how locals perceive POs and peacekeepers relative to their communities and women and girls. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Nations (UN) Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has undertaken a predominantly militarised approach to peacekeeping, in particular in its stabilisation and protection activities. While military operations have achieved some short-term gains there have been a number of drawbacks, including that they have closed the door on political solutions to the conflict, while undermining the perception of the UN's impartiality, increasing risk to civilians, and drawing resources from non-military activities. Further, in spite of resources invested in military solutions, they have not been effective overall in consolidating peace. The purpose of this research is to examine the benefits and drawbacks of pursuing a predominantly militarised approach to peacekeeping, based on lessons learned in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Researchers have shown how UN stabilization peace operations mix liberal and illiberal goals and strategies. Yet, further research is needed to theorize and comprehend illiberal peacebuilding features of stabilization operations. This article fills this gap by demonstrating how UN stabilization operations wield illiberal peacebuilding practices. Building upon previous scholarship, we understand illiberal peacebuilding both as an approach and outcome which is oriented by and helps diffuse illiberal norms in the societies where illiberal peacebuilding is instrumentalized by local, regional and international actors. We frame UN stabilization operations in the CAR, the DRC, and Mali as illiberal peacebuilding processes infused with illiberal strategies and show that liberal actors can engage with illiberal strategies for peace promotion. We also analyse peace agreements that accompany these missions as illiberal peacebuilding outcomes and show how these are shaped by illiberal norms. Our key finding is that a set of illiberal norms – exclusion, violence, power inequality and authoritarianism – are central for both UN stabilization operations and peace agreements signed in CAR, DRC and Mali. Therefore, we challenge the UN discourse that stabilization is a needed first step towards liberal and inclusive peace agreements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper deals with the civil war and the international 'humanitarian' military intervention in Ituri (DR Congo). The relationship between non-state armed groups and the United Nations' mission (MONUC) in Ituri was marked by the lack of a particular knowledge, a knowledge that is constructed through established patterns of interaction. Power balances were not defined leading to continual conflict. This paper interrogates the way actors dealt with the uncertainty this figuration provided and the final decision to take decisive action. It argues that uncertainty causes difficult problems for the actors involved in post-conflict intervention spaces, but that it may also be exploited as a tactical tool. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper on '"war ethnography" revisits the author's 1994-5 participation in one of 150 non-governmental organizations (NGOs) working under the auspices of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) in the postgenocide Great Lakes region - Rwanda. Burundi, South Ki\u of the Democratic Republic of Congo (then Zaire) - as an anthropologist to "listen, analyze, and offer philosophical reflections of what happened." Alongside an account of the settings of this engagement, the paper examines the sources and applications of anthropological expertise acquired during relief and mediation fieldwork. The methodology of this inquiry involved straight-forward ethnographic inquiry - listening to stories and discussions - as well as interpretation and analysis, in the following ways: contextualizing the narratives collected in terms of community settings and sequences of events; balancing the "'ethnographic imperative" of informants' desire to tell their story with full identification, vs. preserving their anonymity along the lines of academic and human rights protocols; determining rights violations while protecting subjects from revenge attacks; reading the emotional register of the narratives - an indicator of trauma; explicating the ethical dilemmas and standards for andiropology in conflict situations; assessing ownership and control of expert knowledge; and offering recommendations to young anthropologists or workers with NGOs in conflict situations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The political trajectory that characterised post-cold war epoch underscores a dangerous centrifugal trend in the nature of violent conflict; civil unrest and guerrilla warfare that undermine the charter of United Nations of promoting international peace and security, and the discourse of peace coexistence at the forefront of international cooperation agenda in Africa, South East Europe and Middle East. The international response to this new wave of conflicts has been articulated through the structural mechanism of United Nations as peacekeeping intervention. Despite the successes and failures associated with UN peacekeeping interventions, the trickle of studies spawned by this quest has, developed into a flood of normative and empirical analyses of various aspects and process of International peacekeeping, while limited in unravel the factor that responsible for these successes and failures. This paper argues that the national interests of the super-powers are the potent factors that will determine the success and/or failure of UN peacekeeping operations, using peacekeeping experience in the Democratic Republic Congo (DRC) as a potential case. In this paper, an attempt is made to look at the framework of global politics within which peacekeeping unfolds and how it applies not only in DRC but also in Macedonia, Liberia and Somalia, thereby making it possible to develop an analytical construct for International peacekeeping successes and failures. The paper then concludes that given the contemporary geopolitics and the established structure of UN Security Council, if all super-powers are overtly and strongly committed to any UN peacekeeping operations and genuinely committed to resolving disputes in the trouble spots of the world without any primary or secondary interest in the conflicts involved, then the UN peacekeeping operations will be successful in restoring and sustaining permanent peace in the affected state(s). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article examines the role of the United Nations (UN) in sub-Saharan Africa. The paper explores African decolonization and the era of UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjold between 1953-1961. It looks at the United Nation's 1960-1964 intervention in the Congo. The paper also discusses the role of the UN in the Cold War struggle for self-determination in Southern Africa.

For most of its history the United Nations was reluctant to deal with intelligence and major powers were reluctant to share intelligence with it. But as the UN's peacekeeping operations intensified in some of the world's hot spots in the early 1990s, the UN found it both necessary and wise to create an information analysis capability at UN headquarters in New York. To funnel selected intelligence to the headquarters, several countries (including the US, UK, France and Russia) loaned intelligence officers to the UN's Situation Centre on a secondment basis. This paper describes the activities of the SitCen's Information and Research (I&R) Unit that existed from 1993 to 1999 under the informal motto ‘Keeping an Eye on the World’. Using a case study of I&R reporting on the situation in Eastern Zaire (1996), where UN-run refugee camps were under attack, it is possible to examine the nature and utility of the intelligence provided by the intelligence officers to UN decision-makers and the planners of the Canadian-led multinational force in the region. It reveals that the Unit provided significant and useful intelligence about arms shipments, belligerent activities, and the status of refugees and made several prescient predictions and warnings. The Unit sought to minimize national bias and incomplete information, though both problems were still in evidence. Still, in many ways, the I&R Unit remains a useful model for the development of a future intelligence capability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The fascination with special forces could be ascribed to the prominence of their use in contemporary conflicts across the globe. There is, however, a paradox of employing such a highly lethal force in order to pursuit peace. With peacekeeping evolving parallel with the strategic environment, especially in Africa, the trend towards more robust interventions has become prevalent since the end of the Cold War. As such, the requirement for accurate and timely intelligence in peace missions has become crucial. Admittedly, special forces would not necessarily be the soldiers expected to wear blue berets and participate in peace missions. It may come as a surprise to the uninformed, though, to learn that special forces have indeed participated, and are still involved, in peace missions across the globe. Drawing from a case study where special forces have been involved in peace missions under the umbrella of the United Nations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, this article investigates the utilization of special forces and the role they could play in peace missions in Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the application of complexity theory to UN peacekeeping. To date, peacekeeping has been dominated by linear models of change, assuming that conflict settings can be addressed by elite-driven peace processes, gradual improvements to state institutional capacity, and development programming. However, this article argues that complexity theory offers a far more accurate and useful lens through which to view the work of peacekeeping: conflict settings represent complex, interdependent socio-political systems with emergent qualities giving them the capacity to self-organize via feedback loops and other adaptive activity. Self-organization means such systems are highly resistant to attempts to change behaviour via top-down or input-output approaches. In fact, peacekeeping itself is endogenous to the systems it is trying to change, often displaying the same kinds of self-organization typical of complex systems elsewhere. Drawing on experience working and conducting fieldwork in the UN peacekeping mission in Democratic Republic of the Congo, this article argues that UN peacekeeping operations should view themselves as actors within the complex conflict ecosystem, looking to enable transformational change from within, rather than impose liberal Western models from without. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Contrary to popular perceptions, United Nations (UN) peacekeepers engage in combat fairly frequently. A central challenge facing the UN is thus calibration between force and politics: ensuring the organization's combat power is harnessed to viable political strategies for peace. However, the epistemic community on peacekeeping remains deeply divided between skeptics and proponents of "robust" operations, where peacekeepers are expected to use force to implement mission mandates. This article suggests that militarily effective, robust peacekeeping is most important for improving civilian protection and ensuring mission credibility in theaters where there is no peace to keep; proposes a novel framework and typology to assess combat effectiveness in UN peace operations; and compiles descriptive statistics for the 1948–2020 period. Finally, case studies of four battles involving UN peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of the Congo illuminate the conditions that are conducive to the UN's combat effectiveness. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: There is often collateral damage to health systems during epidemics, affecting women and girls the most, with reduced access to non-outbreak related services, particularly in humanitarian settings. This rapid case study examines sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services in the Democratic Republic of the Congo when the COVID-19 hit, towards the end of an Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) outbreak, and in a context of protracted insecurity. Methods: This study draws on quantitative analysis of routine data from four health zones, a document review of policies and protocols, and 13 key-informant interviews with staff from the Ministry of Public Health, United Nations agencies, international and national non-governmental organizations, and civil society organizations. Results: Utilization of SRH services decreased initially but recovered by August 2020. Significant fluctuations remained across areas, due to the end of free care once Ebola funding ceased, insecurity, number of COVID-19 cases, and funding levels. The response to COVID-19 was top-down, focused on infection and prevention control measures, with a lack of funding, technical expertise and overall momentum that characterized the EVD response. Communities and civil society did not play an active role for the planning of the COVID-19 response. While health zone and facility staff showed resilience, developing adaptations to maintain SRH provision, these adaptations were short-lived and inconsistent without external support and funding. Conclusion: The EVD outbreak was an opportunity for health system strengthening that was not sustained during COVID-19. This had consequences for access to SRH services, with limited-resources available and deprioritization of SRH. Plain Language Summary: Women and girls often face increased challenges to accessing healthcare during epidemics on top of pre-existing health disparities. There is emerging evidence that COVID-19 has had negative impacts on the health of women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa due to diverted funding, reduced services, negative socioeconomic impacts, and increased or new barriers to access. In the DRC, COVID-19 hit shortly after the end of an Ebola epidemic within a context of protracted insecurity. This study used mixed methods and drew upon 13 interviews to examine the effects of COVID-19 on SRH services in North Kivu and how the health system did or did not adapt to ensure continued access and utilization of SRH services. There was limited prioritization of SRH during COVID-19. Although the government issued policies on how to adapt SRH services, these were developed centrally, without much guidance on how to operationalize these policies in different contexts. Consequently, healthcare providers and civil society actors developed their own ways to continue activities at local levels, not necessarily in a systematic way. There was limited longer-term strengthening of the health system that could adapt to the subsequent COVID-19 pandemic aside from increased capacity of healthcare providers to manage infection prevention and control measures. However, this was hampered by the lack of personal protective equipment that received no external support. Therefore, donors need to consider how resources can be leveraged to support sustained strengthening of the health system to be able to adapt to shocks even when resources are limited. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The United Nations Missions in the Democratic Republic of Congo have faced heavy allegations of peacekeeper-perpetrated sexual exploitation and abuse. Reports indicate that sexual encounters between members of peacekeeping forces and female civilians have resulted in the birth of children; however, no conclusive information on these children exists to date. This is the first study to explore the perspectives of youth who were fathered and abandoned by peacekeepers. We analysed semi-structured interviews with 35 peacekeeper-fathered children (PKFC) regarding their perceptions of family in light of their fathers' absence. The results show that PKFC's lack of knowledge about their fathers significantly impacts their self-conception and social identity. Not relying on paternal support was perceived to exacerbate poverty while the inability to uncover paternal roots and family ties presented a barrier to cultural integration. Although increasingly reliant on their maternal family, PKFC received limited care from their mothers' kin networks, causing some to compare their upbringing to that of orphans. The resulting divergence between participants' ideals of family and their subjective life experiences created cognitive dissonance which was reduced through a situational attribution of neglect. PKFC without support mechanisms engaged in wishful thinking about relationships to their unknown fathers and increased the value of searching for them. Derived from their hope to overcome hardship, they saw the pursuit of ideal-typical family relations as the route to happiness and financial security. Based on the emotional presence of their absent fathers, we discuss family and identity-related challenges for PKFC and make recommendations for positive change. Highlights: Explores the perspectives of children born of war through data collected with child and adolescent PKFC. Analyses family relations via qualitative interviews and visual research. Illustrates youth's mental scripts of fatherhood and family life in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Identifies wishful thinking as a form of coping with father absence and related challenges in patrilineal societies. Adds to the limited knowledge about paternal orphans in Sub-Saharan Africa. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) by United Nations (UN) peacekeepers causes severe physical and psychological consequences. Where SEA leads to pregnancy and childbirth, peacekeepers typically absolve themselves of their paternal responsibilities and paternity suits are largely unsuccessful. The lack of support for peacekeeper-fathered children (PKFC) tarnishes the image of the UN who fails to implement a victim-centred approach to SEA. Analysing shortcomings in the provision of support, this article presents an evaluation of the UN's accountability system from the perspective of PKFC families. In-depth interviews with thirty-five PKFC and sixty mothers demonstrate local barriers to child support and paternity claims in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. We discuss PKFC's need for assistance and their mothers' attempts to navigate an opaque international legal system. The findings cast light on their limited access to UN subsidies and offer recommendations to better implement existing UN goals of justice and victim-oriented policies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The announcement that all UN peacekeepers will be withdrawn from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) in 2011 was met with a great deal of scepticism and even cynicism, specifically in view of several important challenges that remain obstacles in the country's post-conflict peacebuilding process. The article notes that in the case of the DRC, many analysts and role-players believe that the situation is still extremely fragile and that it is too early for UN peacekeepers to leave the country. At the same time, the DRC government is of the opinion that its security forces will be able to deal with the security situation in the absence of the UN forces. The article points out that the DRC tends to sustain a pattern of structural violence and privatised governance, and that its government still needs to make huge strides in creating a secure and peaceful environment - especially for civilians - through reconstruction, state-building and security governance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Major General Patrick Cammaert Could Not Have Said It Better: "It Is Now More Dangerous To Be A Woman Than To Be A Soldier In Modern Wars"; And General Cammaert Knew Exactly What He Was Saying As He Was The Deputy Force Commander Of The United Nations Mission To The Democratic Republic Of Congo In 2008, A Country Know To Be The "Rape Capital Of The World" Where Violating Women And Young Children Seemed To Be The Norm Rather Than The Exception. Forget For A Minute The Litany Of Conventions, Protocols And United Nations Security Council Resolutions That Speak Of Sexual Violence As A Breach Of Human Rights And A War Crime, The Fact Remains That Atrocities Against Women And Children, Especially Young Girls, Continues Either With Complicity Or Impunity Or Both. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Does peacebuilding shape the regime type of countries where international missions are deployed? Most peacebuilding missions take place in authoritarian contexts, and seek to overcome the legacies of conflict by overseeing transitions to democratic rule; however, most regimes that experience peacebuilding still retain some form of authoritarian rule. In this article, we examine the extent to which international peacebuilding missions contribute to the consolidation of post-conflict authoritarian regimes even when their stated aims involve the promotion of democracy. We argue that international peacebuilders can act as enablers of authoritarianism in host countries. We distinguish this category of behaviour from explicit 'autocracy promotion', which implies intentional support to autocracy. Instead, enabling is often an unintended consequence, and we identify two mechanisms through which enabling occurs: by building the capacity of incumbent authoritarian leaders and by signalling a permissive environment for authoritarian behaviour for national actors. We illustrate our argument with the case of the United Nations peacekeeping operation in the Democratic Republic of Congo. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the implications of the Soviet Union political leader Nikita Khrushchev attack on the United Nations (UN) and on the West. Topics include the UN decisive stand against colonialism that angered several Western countries, the Belgian military intervention following the former Belgian Congo's declaration of indepedence in late June 1960, and the U.S. reaction on Congo leader Patrice Lumumba's decision to request assistance from the USSR following UN Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld's preoccupation during the Congo Civil War.

This article uses the concept of the peacekeeping economy to examine how peacekeepers – as individuals – and peacekeeping – as a complex of institutions, policy and practice – interact with, and inevitably shape, the societies in which they operate. It focuses on how peacekeeping economies are gendered, and the implications of this gendering. The article first examines three types of work characteristic of the peacekeeping economies in Liberia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo – namely domestic service, sex work, and private security. The United Nation’s (UN’s) institutional responses to these sectors demonstrates the persistence of ‘traditional’ gendered ideologies in peacekeeping, in which the ‘private’, feminized sphere of the home – encompassing peacekeepers’ domestic and sexual arrangements – is marginalized, while the masculinized realm of security is prioritized and closely regulated. Furthermore, factoring in peacekeepers’ individual responses to service, sex, and security reveals a counter-narrative of the peacekeeper-as-vulnerable. This counter-narrative helps obscure the potential for exploitation of locals by peacekeepers. Yet it also upsets the subject position of both the peacekeeper and ‘the local’ in an unexpected manner, ultimately undermining the notion of the (masculine) UN protector. Such an understanding complicates popular notions of how gender ‘works’ in peacekeeping sites, and enables insights into the ramifications of peacekeeping’s (often) self-imposed limitations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers the author's insights on the participation of the Haitians in the United Nations Organization in the Congo (ONUC) from 1960-1964. Topics discussed by the author include the relationships between the African and Haitian people concerning Haitian migration, the collective and individual memories of Haitians in the Congo, and the contribution of professor Michel-Rolph Trouillot in the Haitian history.

The article discusses Soviet Union (USSR) foreign policy regarding the 1960 to 1961 Congo crisis in the context of the Cold War. Topics include the impact of the Congo crisis on Soviet foreign policy toward the Third World (developing nations), Soviet relations with Congolese revolutionary Patrice Lumumba, and the involvement of the United Nations (UN) in the crisis. Soviet relations with Ghana, the views of Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev, and U.S. support for dictator Mobutu Sese Seko.

Northern development policies in African countries affected by war are shaped by security concerns and have neoliberal and realist elements. The neoliberal economic policy purports to be inclusive, but when it meets non-compliance, realist ambitions are pursued through the use or strategic oversight of force. The liberalisation of mining in Katanga, Democratic Republic of Congo, was promoted through northern policy and was exclusive in strengthening unaccountable domestic governance. This marginalised the majority of the population politically and economically and reinforced the international political economy. Consequently, northern intervention has increased insecurity in Congo, and is potentially destabilising in contravening reciprocity in international relations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents updates on political, social and cultural news and events in Africa. Ethiopia Prime Minister Meles Zenawi passed away on August 20, 2012 while receiving medical treatment in a foreign hospital. Regional leaders at the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) resolved to set up a neutral international force to hunt down armed groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Reports from the United Nations (UN) reveal the number of displaced people across Congo.

Since the peace agreements of 2002–2003 which ended the second war in the Democratic Republic of Congo, reconstruction of the army has been an inherently political process, in common with other attempts to carry out security sector reform (SSR). This article briefly sketches out the Congolese army's history, then attempts to fill a gap in the literature on Congolese SSR by detailing what can be found of the actual structure and shape of the present army. The efforts that have been made to reform the army are then examined, followed by a conclusion which examines the major issues and possible ways forward. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The following exploratory case study analyses European Union's military involvement in the Democratic Republic of Congo in the framework of two operations: Artemis (2003) and EUFOR (2006). The European Union in this context is not regarded as a ‘single actor’ but as part of a system, including the member states and the United Nations. In order to bridge the gap between strategic culture and behaviour, it is proposed to broaden the scope of the strategic culture approach by taking specific interests and ‘games’ played by the actors across these levels into consideration. The analysis also suggests that two background features of the multi-level ‘game’ as part of the European Union's strategic culture should be especially recognized: the ‘barrack yard syndrome’ as a principle of behaviour influencing the question who of participates in the operation, and ‘multilateral Caesarism’ as a feature of the ‘multilevel game’ which limits parliamentarian control of decisions and may also have a major impact on decisions to launch a military operation in the framework of the EU. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008, the UN faced a military and humanitarian crisis in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and asked the EU to send a rapid-reaction force to help stabilize the situation. The EU failed to do so. This article analyses the immediate circumstances and consequences of this non-deployment. It also identifies longer-term flaws in the EU–UN relationship which contributed to European inaction in this crisis. The article argues that the events of 2008 meant that over-inflated expectations of European rapid-reaction capabilities have been replaced with an assumption that the EU is no longer a significant military player in sub-Saharan Africa. Studying this ‘non-event’ provides a clearer understanding of the wider EU–UN relationship than can be derived from studying examples of successful inter-institutional cooperation alone. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

An essay is presented on the proposed withdrawal of all United Nations (UN) peacekeepers in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It is speculated that DRC President Joseph Kabila has decreased reliance on UN peacekeeping movements. It describes concerns raised regarding the said withdrawal, with emphasis on the continued violence and problematic humanitarian situation in the DRC. In spite of social unrest, the DRC still managed to improve relations with other states including Rwanda and Uganda.

The article explores to what degree the United Nations was morally responsible in the management of the refugee camps in the aftermath of the Rwandan genocide and the management of the violation of the Democratic Republic of Congo's territorial integrity and state sovereignty by neighboring nations. According to the author, the UN has adequate data and early warnings from its own agencies. The author adds that UN agencies assigned a problem should be situated within the decision-making structure. The author believes the UN failed in these two areas.

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The article reports that the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) has reached refugees in Equateur, Democratic Republic of Congo following government operations against ethnic militias. UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic says that reaching the refugees to give them aid presents big challenges. Aside from giving food, shelter, and medical aid, teams from the UN are also registering newly arrived refugees.

Reports that the deployment of United Nations troops has forced Rwandan rebels to withdraw from several areas of eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Launch of the military operation, Operation Iron Fist; Support of France to the action taken by the United Nations mission to DRC.

The article discusses ironies characterized by the reform of the United Nations (U.N.) Secretariat. The U.N. started 42 new missions since 1990, to provide more services to the world. The expansion of its tasks originated the need for reform of the Secretariat. The Independent Inquiry Committee (IIC) revealed stunning information on the politicization of decision-making, the managerial weakness, and the ethical lapses of the oil for-food program, which led to negative impressions. Also an internal investigation of sexual exploitation in the Democratic Republic of Congo by the U.N. peacekeepers further strengthened negative impressions.

This article examines the use of force with respect to the protection of civilians in peace operations, using MONUC as a case study. By analysing the provisions on the use of force and the importance attached to the human rights situation in the authorizing resolutions of the Security Council, it suggests that the UN is inclined to broaden the concept of use of force when facing a deteriorating human rights situation. The discrepancy between the written ambitions and the political willingness to ensure their practical implementation, however, remains huge. In this vein, it is crucial that the Security Council not only considers but also adopts the recommendations by the Secretary-General and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. If so, the important synergy and complementarity between the roles of peacekeepers and human rights officers is more likely to bear fruit in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Operation Artemis , carried out in the Democratic Republic of Congo from June to September 2003 on the request of the United Nations, was the European Union's first independently launched military operation and its first operation in Africa. France, supported by Britain, was the driving political force working to secure EU engagement as well as the main military contributor to the operation. This article argues that Franco-British cooperation has been the main engine in the development of both EU military cooperation in general and of the EU's role in African security. Moreover, it argues that Operation Artemis will set a precedent for future EU autonomous operations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Effective peacekeeping requires the proactive acquisition and prudent analysis of information about conditions within the mission area. This is especially true if the operation is conducted in a hazardous and unpredictable environment and the lives of peacekeepers are threatened, as was the case with the UN operation in the Congo (ONUC). A Military Information Branch (MIB) was established as part of ONUC to enhance the security of UN personnel, to support specific operations, to warn of outbreaks of conflict and to estimate outside interference (for example, the importation of armaments). The MIB employed signals intelligence using a wireless message interception system, photographic intelligence using airplanes equipped for the purpose, and human intelligence from lawful interrogations of prisoners and informants. A detailed description of the activities of the MIB is provided here for the first time, using newly uncovered archival files. The study points to some of the difficulties and benefits of developing dedicated intelligence-gathering bodies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Peacekeeping always has an underlying political character. There are three possible reasons for this. First - and this will be true of all peacekeeping activity - those states who authorize an operation and, in one way or another, contribute to it will do so because they hope that it will advance certain goals. Second, those who control the day-to-day conduct of the operation - in the case of the UN, the Secretary-General and the soldiers and officials on the spot - may have certain agendas of their own, and find themselves able to use their position to advance them. And thirdly, even if the latter are doing no more than trying impartially to execute the will of their political masters, an operation may none the less have an impact on, the local political balance. This may be particularly so in the case of missions which operate not at a border but throughout a jurisdiction. The UN's Congo operation, 1960-64, was political in all three respects. And because the dominating political purposes were not shared by all the interested actors, the operation created much controversy. Given the points of comparison between the Congo and some current peacekeeping operations, these earlier controversies may have contemporary relevance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article reports that M23, a rebel group in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has changed its name into the Congolese Revolutionary Army (ARC). ARC plans to fight any new attacks by the army. According to ARC leader Jean-Marie Runiga, a partnership was formed between the army and the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda. Both Rwanda and Uganda were accused by the United Nations of supporting the rebels.

The article discusses the request by the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping chief Herve Ladsous to strengthen its operations in the Democratic Republic (DR) of Congo that included the use of drones. The request for aircraft capable of at least 12h flight endurance initially met resistance from Rwanda stating that it would oppose the use of drones. Experts warned that the use of drones will distract from the actual issues such as the dereliction of Congolese state and foreign military meddling.

The article reports on the urge of United Nations (UN) official for the authorities of the Democratic Republic (DR) of the Congo and Angola to investigate reports on raped women at expulsion. According to Margot Wallström, Special Representative for Sexual Violence in Conflict, authorities are called to investigate and proceed in compliance with relevant legislation. Local non-governmental organisations (NGOs) were told that men were killed and women were raped during expulsion.

The article reports on the overnight attack on a United Nations (UN) peacekeeping base in Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) which claimed the lives of three Indian blue helmets. On August 19, 2010, Major Vianney Kazarama announces that two people in connection with the killings have been arrested and one has confessed while the other was being interrogated. Moreover, the reasons behind the attack particularly the resurgent violence are also discussed.

The article offers news briefs related to the national security in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). DRC President Joseph Kabila wants to end the United Nations (UN) mission in DRC pointing out that the nation can control its security issue. The police had arrested nearly 100 people due to accusations of killing dozens and firing thousands of people caused tribal conflict on fishing rights and had also fired in the air to cut off a demonstration in the northeastern area made by ex-combatants.

The article focuses on the efforts of the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) to help the refugees in Africa particularly in Tanzania, Burundi and Democratic Republic (DR) of Congo. It notes that the UNHCR will provide assistance for the 1972 Burundian refugees who are deported in Tanzania. Refugees from eastern DR of Congo's Banyamulenge community fear to move to Bwagiriza once the camp in Gihinga closes. Meanwhile, UNHCR committed to help improve the conditions of Western Sahara's refugees.

The article reports that Angola has accelerated expulsions of nationals from the Democratic Republic of Congo over the past few months, according to data from United Nations (UN) observers. A UN peacekeeping mission spokesman said a new wave of expulsions started on May 26, 2008, with more than 18,000 people crossing the Tungila river.

The article reports that Jan Egeland, the Undersecretary General of the United Nations for Humanitarian Affairs, has remained optimistic the conflicts in Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo will come to an end. Egeland renewed his appeals for international assistance, citing that funds are insufficient to rehabilitate populations affected by the war.

The article reports that the Democratic Republic of Congo has extended the deadline of the registration of the candidates for the June 2006 presidential elections. The 10-day extension came when the European Union has approved plans to deploy hundreds of troops to reinforce United Nations peacekeepers ahead of the polls. Some important players are not ready and are imposing conditions to participate in the election.

The article reports on the photographs supplied by DR Rwanda to the UN Security Council. DR Congo says these are proof of their accusation against Rwanda. The said proof shows weapons that DR Congo recovered at the site of attack. It also includes ammunitions, Rwandan currency, military medical insurance card and a Rwandan defence forces label.