Peacekeeping in the Middle East

If peacekeeping were to be understood under the terms within which it was defined in the 1 950s, then many of the current difficulties in what ostensibly pass as peacekeeping operations would in all likelihood have been avoided. But the reality is that peacekeeping operations have been transformed in the post-Cold War period, such that the boundaries between peacekeeping, peace enforcement and outright military intervention (especially for reasons which may not enjoy international consensus), have become ambiguous. 6 Certainly in the contemporary Middle East the distinctions have become badly blurred and while one example, that of Afghanistan, may enj oy broader international and UN support, another, Iraq, was conducted in the face of UN disagreement and objections. Whatever the level of international cooperation, both interventions represent operations far in excess of the peacekeeping activities envisaged in the 1 950s. Indeed both operations are emblematic of 'nation building, ' which while some commentators may consider falls under the general rubric of peacekeeping and peace operations, in reality represents a qualitative shift away from such limited operations towards a much more long-term and intensive exercise. Indeed, for the all the desire to distinguish the United Nations from the ill-fated League of Nations and pre-war colonialism, the operations in Afghanistan and Iraq bear more resemblance to the objectives of the inter-war mandated territories (with all that these implied) than to the limited peacekeeping operations of the post-war period. 7 This is especially apparent when one considers that the powers leading the military interventions have, on the cessation of hostilities, to transform themselves convincingly from protagonists in the recent conflict to 'impartial' peacekeepers/enforcers. An acceptance of this reality, rather than a continued and stubborn pretence otherwise, would represent a significant step in the right direction and allow for systematic long-term planning incorporating cultural realities.