Peace operations remain a principal tool for managing armed conflict and protecting civilians. The fully revised, expanded and updated third edition of Understanding Peacekeeping provides a comprehensive and up-to-date introduction to the theory, history, and politics of peace operations.

Drawing on a dataset of nearly two hundred historical and contemporary missions, this book evaluates the changing characteristics of the contemporary international environment in which peace operations are deployed, the strategic purposes peace operations are intended to achieve, and the major challenges facing today's peacekeepers. All the chapters have been revised and updated, and five new chapters have been added - on stabilization, organized crime, exit strategies, force generation, and the use of force.

Part 1 summarizes the central concepts and issues related to peace operations. Part 2 charts the historical development of peacekeeping, from 1945 through to 2020. Part 3 analyses the strategic purposes that United Nations and other peace operations are intended to achieve - namely, prevention, observation, assistance, enforcement, stabilization, and administration. Part 4 looks forward and examines the central challenges facing today's peacekeepers: force generation, the regionalization and privatization of peace operations, the use of force, civilian protection, gender issues, policing and organized crime, and exit strategies.

About the Author
Paul D. Williams is Professor in the Elliott School of International Affairs at the George Washington University.

Alex J. Bellamy is Professor of Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Queensland, and Director of the Asia Pacific Centre for the Responsibility to Protect.

Reviews

"This book is magisterial in bringing together the various strands of research and viewpoints into a clear, accessible, remarkably comprehensive and very readable format."
-Katharina Coleman, University of British Columbia

"This book is the perfect introduction to peacekeeping - complete with little-known facts, reliable statistics, insightful theories, provoking debates, and in-depth analyses. It will be incredibly useful to students and experienced researchers alike."
-Severine Autesserre, Author of Peaceland and The Frontlines of Peace

"This book is by far the most comprehensive and readable overview of the evolution, challenges, and controversies of peace operations yet written. It will be exceptionally valuable not only as an introduction to the subject but also as a reference document for experts."
-Roland Paris, University of Ottawa

"very engaging."
-H-War, H-Net Reviews

Book Information
ISBN 9780745686721
Author Paul D. Williams
Format Paperback
Page Count 496
Imprint Polity Press
Publisher John Wiley and Sons Ltd
Weight(grams) 794g
Dimensions(mm) 244mm * 170mm * 28mm