The UK and peacekeeping operations on the African continent

This chapter charts how the UK has engaged with UN peacekeeping on the African continent. It argues that while it is difficult to identify a single overarching policy towards UN operations on the African continent, there are identifiable trends which have influenced how policymakers have treated the topic. Most notable is that throughout the UK’s history of engagement with peacekeeping on the African continent, there has been varying degrees of scepticism as to the motivations, politics and practicalities of UN missions. The second main trend is that the UK’s interactions that effect African-based peacekeeping operations have generally been undertaken on a political level, be it in the chamber of the UN Security Council (UNSC), through the UN secretariat, or through financial and bilateral contributions.