Peacekeeping and Conflict Prevention: An Old Principle and a New Responsibility

Abstract

In the last years, there has been a strong call at the United Nations for a renewed emphasis on conflict prevention and sustaining peace. The review process carried out in 2015 on peacekeeping operations and peacebuilding architecture stresses that prevention of armed conflict must be a priority for all entities across all pillars of the United Nations system. Under Chapter VI of the Charter (peaceful settlement of disputes), and its general competence in the maintenance of international peace and security (Article 24), the Security Council is engaged in all three types of conflict prevention: operational, structural and systemic. This chapter examines how it has been defined this ‘comprehensive conflict prevention strategy’ in the context of the ‘sustaining peace agenda’, focusing, in particular, on the Security Council’s tools available for preventing the outbreak or the recurrence of armed conflicts.