Un Legion An Operational Tool

Between the strategic goal of international security and stability and the tactical employment of forces to carry out UN resolutions, there currently exists a chasm. No operational tool is readily available for matching ends to means. The operational commander in the field needs to be politician and baby sitter to fully grasp the ramifications of these resolutions, while simultaneously training and equipping the come-as-you-are forces which arrive to participate in UN peace operations. A toole to bridge the gap between strategic and tactical control could be the formation of a UN Legion made up of international volunteers and supported by a well-staff headquarters.

A fresh examination of the origins, evolution and future of proposals for a UN 'Legion' - a permanent military force recruited, trained and deployed by the UN. This new book shows how this idea has grown, re-emerged and evolved in direct connection with the development of UN international military forces. The legionnaires have been seen as the future representatives of a modern constabulary, international police or humanitarian chivalry. They have also invariably evoked the idea of mercenaries and resurrected fears of supranational government and a 'world army'. Such a force has been unattainable when needed, not needed when attainable, revealing the deficiencies of the international system in the perspective of a particular task. The idea highlights the inadequacy of the means as compared to the objectives, and the limits of the UN's capacity to adapt itself to new challenges. This study examinmes how the project of a UN 'Legion' is conditional on the viability of the original Utopia, and vice versa. It also argues that the extreme polarization of the debate may reflect a tendency to negate the inherent contradictions of reality, reminding us of the historical dimension of the building of an international organization, a 'work in progress'.

This book examines the attitudes of political, military and non-state actors towards the idea of a UN Emergency Peace Service, and the issues that might affect the establishment of this service in both theory and practice. The United Nations Emergency Peace Service (UNEPS) is a civil society-led idea to establish a permanent UN service to improve UN peace operations as well as to operationalise the emerging norm of the ‘responsibility to protect’ civilians from atrocity crimes. The UNEPS proposal has received limited support. The book argues that interest in, and support for, the UNEPS proposal is determined by perceptions that it would erode state sovereignty, the extent to which the principles of the proposal are consistent with actors’ views on the world and perceptions on whether UNEPS will realistically be capable of contributing to the workings of the UN and regional peacekeeping systems in areas that are seen to be deficient. This book makes the case for localising the UNEPS proposal so that it is more consistent with attitudes of those consulted for this research. It concludes that the development of a series of less ambitious proposals could be the first steps to creating a rapidly deployable service with the mandate to prevent atrocity crimes. This book will be of much interest to students of peace operations, the Responsibility to Protect, international organisations, IR and security studies.

This book analyses three major themes: decolonization, sovereignty, and peacekeeping. Their interaction during the national liberation struggle during the Cold War, culminating in the 1956 Suez War, addresses the principle of national sovereignty after World War II in the framework of the UN Charter. The new peacekeeping operations were used in many conflicts, during which the Charter’s theory and application were tested. The rise of the USA as the key Western power and Israel’s special role in the Middle East have created a new confrontational dynamic for the entire region. The interaction between the book’s main themes in the field has led to the principles of peacekeeping in international and national conflicts being reviewed in light of the discredited ‘Capstone Doctrine’. The author argues that state sovereignty is sacrosanct, but humanitarian interventions are equally imperative in his view. Striking the right balance is crucial for managing conflicts. The author: · offers a well-informed historical account and an authoritative political analysis · was exposed to UNEF deployments and termination and knows key peacekeeping actors · draws on original documents, memoirs, and interviews · includes unpublished photos and previously unavailable documentary material · has experience in government and academia

Questions whether or not the United Nations can be reformed

The Glubb Reports studies papers written by General Sir John Glubb, the long-serving British commander of the Jordanian Arab Legion. It covers issues such as the role of tribes and desert control, the impact of Palestine, the Arab Legion's role in the first Arab-Israeli war, the expansion of the Arab Legion, and Glubb's dismissal in 1956.