Following are UN Secretary-General António Guterres’ remarks to the Security Council debate on United Nations peacekeeping, today in New York:
I thank the French presidency for convening this important debate.
For nearly 10 years, I have seen what peacekeepers can do when the Security Council stands behind them — and what they endure when it is divided. We do not lack tools. What we lack, all too often, is the political space to use them. That is the starting point of the review of peace operations requested in the Pact for the Future.
Peacekeeping is, above all, a political instrument. It is deployed to support political solutions — never as a substitute for them. For three decades, we sent peacekeepers mainly to help the parties to a civil war implement a comprehensive peace agreement.
Today, such agreements are rarer than at any time in decades — harder to reach and more fragile. Most of our missions now operate where peace remains elusive. They are asked to contain the damage of wars that the parties feel little pressure to end — and that outside actors sometimes feed.
The ground has shifted. Too often, our mandates have not. Peacekeepers are attacked. Civilians are targeted. International law is violated with a mounting sense of impunity. Drones, lethal autonomous weapons, disinformation amplified by artificial intelligence… the nature of conflict is changing fast.
Meanwhile, peacekeeping budgets have been slashed, and the number of troops and police greatly reduced. Continuous improvement matters — and we are doing so, from Action for Peacekeeping to the UN80 Initiative. But that can only take us so far.
The success of every mission requires your unity and a recognition of the evolving context in which we operate. That is why the review calls for a reset. Allow me to reflect on five overarching priorities.
First, put peacemaking first. Let me be clear: peacekeeping operations should be deployed only when a peace agreement, or at least a robust ceasefire, is in place. Peacekeepers can do a lot to preserve the peace. But we cannot keep peace where there is no peace to keep. The way back to peacekeeping runs through peacemaking.
The Charter gives this Council the tools — including Chapter VI. I urge you to use them, to investigate disputes before they become wars, to visit the countries concerned, to build a shared understanding of the facts — the foundation of shared action.
We will make fuller use of our good offices and the work of our missions and envoys — as we have done in Colombia, and as we are doing in Cyprus. Not every crisis requires a new mission. But every crisis requires a political strategy and the coherent support of Member States.
Second, forge a new partnership with host States. Peace cannot be imported. It must be built from within — by the national actors, who hold the key. That means consulting host States, at the mandating stage and at every renewal, while also hearing all other parties to the conflict and civil society. It means an open, continuing conversation with the countries that contribute troops and police.
And it could mean, for each peacekeeping mandate, a political mechanism such as a compact — between this Council, the Secretariat and the host State — with each of us committing to what the others need: Adherence and support to the mandate of the mission, on the forces and equipment it requires, and on the technologies it must be allowed to use.
Third, mandate for the world as it is. That means agreeing, before peacekeepers deploy, on a longer-term vision on what they are meant to help achieve; when appropriate, shorter-term objectives to measure progress. Mandates must be focused on what peacekeeping missions do best — particularly politics and security and, where mandated, the protection of civilians.
Protection built into missions’ mandates from the outset — in how they are planned, mandated and resourced — so that when civilians are threatened, peacekeepers can act decisively. And an exit strategy planned from the start of any mission.
It means treating every renewal as a strategic opportunity to adapt: When circumstances change, mandates must evolve. The Secretariat will provide frank assessments on what is working and what is not — and propose what to change, when to reconfigure, when to leave.
Fourth, empower the operations this Council mandates. Agility is not in the Secretariat’s hands alone. Missions cannot move at the speed of events when they are bound by rigid budgetary rules and administrative processes. Efficiency means making every dollar count. But it can never replace our shared duty to fund peacekeeping predictably and adequately.
Readiness means investing, steadily, in the people and tools of peacekeeping — including more mobile missions, the military and police capabilities of tomorrow, and the means to counter drones. Yet in several places, peacekeepers are still denied technology that any modern force would consider basic. That undermines their ability to fulfil their mandates. Overcoming those restrictions will take the active support of this Council.
Readiness also requires a skilled, diverse workforce, with the full, equal and meaningful participation of women, at all levels. And it requires accountability in both directions — for the conduct of our personnel, and for attacks on those who serve.
Every day, in some of the most dangerous places on earth, peacekeepers create space for dialogue and open pathways to peace. They do so at great risk — and too many have paid the highest price. I honour their courage, and the memory of those who never came home. Resolution 2823 (2026), which this Council adopted unanimously, must now be implemented. No impunity. No exceptions.
Fifth, work as a network. No organization can address today’s conflicts alone. Peacekeepers are part of a wider system — United Nations entities, regional organizations, and the host country — each with its own strengths. Where UN agencies, funds and programmes can deliver better on a task, they should do it and receive the funds to do so — so that peacekeepers can concentrate on what only they can do. And when they leave, the gains do not leave with them.
Our regional partners — above all the African Union — have also an essential role. With resolution 2719 (2023), this Council made a landmark commitment to predictable financing for African Union-led peace support operations. It is time to bring it to life, case by case, always in the service of political solutions.
UN peacekeeping operations should only be deployed when there is a peace agreement or a robust ceasefire. When circumstances require, we need peace enforcing, not peacekeeping. When peace enforcing is justified, it can be led by regional forces or coalitions — as this Council decided in the case of Haiti, with United Nations logistical support.
But force must serve a political strategy — never replace one. It must respect the Charter and adhere to international law. And it must answer to this Council. Without those safeguards, the use of force risks deepening the very conflicts it is meant to end.
The Secretariat should play a strong role in ensuring those safeguards, providing the necessary technical support, and ensuring that enforcement action is rooted in an inclusive political strategy. And where peacekeepers serve alongside enforcement operations, there must be no doubt about who does what — and who answers for it.
Unity is built — through effort, engagement and compromise. That is, first and foremost, the work of this Council. No mandate, no budget, no technology can replace it. But you are not alone. The Secretariat has a fundamental responsibility to actively support you — and the review holds us to it. In the shadow of war, people still look to the blue helmets — and trust them.
Let us be worthy of that trust — every day. Let us invest in peace. Let us be accountable and modernize ourselves, being more effective and cost-effective. Let’s stand united behind those who keep it. And forge, together, new pathways to peace.