SSU Forum/GraSPP Research Seminar “UN Peace Operations: Today and Tomorrow”

The Security Studies Unit of the Institute for Future Initiatives (IFI), in collaboration with the Graduate School of Public Policy, was delighted to host a talk with two very distinguished speakers, namely: Mr. Atul Khare, Under-Secretary General for Operational Support, Department of Operational Support of the United Nations, and Mr. Fumio Iwai, currently Director General of the Secretariat for International Peace Cooperation Headquarters of the Cabinet Office of the Government of Japan.

Kiichi Fujiwara, Professor of International Relations and Director of IFI, chaired the event. He welcomed the guests, stressing that the university’s mission should be to provide useful advice to the society in order to address pressing issues, and among these certainly international peace and cooperation. The achievement of those goals requires action, particularly through peacekeeping operations, which is the topic of the session. Professor Fujiwara proceeded then to introduce both guest speakers. Mr. Khare is one of highest ranking UN officials, in charge of peacekeeping operations, a difficult task considering the magnitude of the logistical and organisational effort, and the intricate political implications. Ambassador Iwai, a very experienced diplomat, has been at the head of the Japanese diplomatic mission in Iraq, and currently in charge of peacekeeping activities of Japan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Mr. Khare opened this talk by thanking the hosts, not only the University of Tokyo but also the Japanese government. He remarked how he saw such a numerous public as a sign of the high value Japanese people attach to the issue of peacekeeping. Before moving into the substance of his talk, he expressed his sadness for the loss of life and great material damage caused by the recent typhoon, while praising the government for the remarkable display of efficiency in the rescue operations. Mr. Khare recalled then how Japan has been for long time deeply committed to the cause of peace and security through the UN. The country is the third largest financial contributor, and it has provided numerous personnel, diplomatic, civilian, and military, to the organisation. Concerning peacekeeping operations, such operations represent the concerted effort of more than 140 countries, with over 100,000 personnel deployed all over the world. The UN has not only managed to restore and keep peace, but has overseen the transition of a number of countries towards stability and steady recovery, such as in the cases of Côte d’Ivoire and Liberia. Japan has contributed directly to two of such success stories, namely Cambodia and Timor Leste. Mr. Khare recalled Mr. Yasushi Akashi, who supervised the peace negotiations in Cambodia, and whom Mr. Khare considers as his mentor. In Cambodia, Japan unfortunately suffered the loss of two peacekeepers, one policemen and one civilian. In Timor Leste, he had the fortune to work with numerous, very talented Japanese nationals, as head of the UN mission. At that time, he requested the then Secretary General Mr. Kofi Annan to appoint a deputy from the East Asian region, and Mr. Takahisa Kawakami was eventually chosen. He was a seasoned diplomat who restlessly worked for the goal of achieving a stable peace in Timor Leste. He died prematurely in 2010, but his legacy, Mr. Khare remarked, lives on.

Overtime, the purpose and nature of UN peacekeeping operations has changed. It is no longer about interstate war, it is about conflicts within states, and even in areas where there is no peace process. Crime and terrorism are becoming the most common challenges which UN missions have to face. Conflicts are becoming more complex and challenging: the supply system has to access remote places with little infrastructure, diseases are a real danger, and security is difficult to achieve and maintain. Besides, there are financial and budgetary hurdles. All such challenges require a coordinated, collective effort from all those who support peace operations. Last year, Secretary General António Guterres started a very ambitious reform of the UN system, including peacekeeping operations, under three main principles: 1) realistic expectations; 2) making operations stronger and safer; 3) mobilise greater support for political solutions, and more support for better trained, better equipped personnel. The UN Secretary General has recently launched the Action for Peacekeeping (A4P) initiative, which includes eight areas (politics; women, peace and security; protection; safety and security; performance and accountability; peacebuilding and sustaining peace; partnerships; conduct of peacekeepers and peacekeeping operations), and measurable goals have been set. Twenty member states are volunteering to be champions in implementing some goals in certain areas, Japan being among them for the improvement of performance and accountability.
Mr. Khare then proceeded to describe the work of his department, namely the Department of Field Support. In the area of performance and accountability, a new division has been established to centralise the supply system, and make it more efficient. The number of unsigned MOUs has dropped to record lows, and are projected to drop even further. A new system of feedback has been set in place, which relates payments to the quality of equipment deployed by the troop contributors. In the area of safety and security, while – unfortunately – not every death is preventable, nobody should however die because of missing or untimely care. The Department is using technologies to collect data as well as to assess and implement best practices to improve medical teams and hospitals of the peacekeeping missions. Technology is key, as a five-year program has been set in place to update that aspect of operations. However, technology is not useful without properly trained personnel, and Japan, under the guidance of PM Abe, has been very active in providing training, particularly for the formation of engineers. Japan has contributed $83 millions for such purpose, and JSDF troops have been deployed to operate training courses in Africa, and now also in Asia, training soldiers of the troop contributing countries in the use of heavy equipment such as bulldozer and excavators, as well as to train female soldiers in signal interceptions.
In conclusion, Mr. Khare stated that there have been many successes in the past decades of peacekeeping operations, but certain areas could have been improved. In order to do better, the UN needs partnerships. Furthermore, innovation is key to success. And finally, Mr. Khare conveyed his gratitude for the great effort demonstrated by Japan, its government, police, JSDF, and civilian personnel.
Mr. Iwai started his talk by thanking not only Professor Fujiwara, but also Yee Kuan Heng, Professor of International Relations at GraSPP, for arranging this meeting at a short notice. Mr. Iwai highlighted how the Heisei era just concluded has been the time when Japan has learned how to conduct peacekeeping operations, including the overseas deployment of JSDF, practically from zero. In 1991, Japan did not contribute its JSDF in the international effort to liberate Kuwait. Although it provided a very generous financial contribution, Japan did not emerge well from that episode. Immediately a debate began about the necessity to introduce legal and practical instruments to make such missions possible. That led to the PKO Law of 1992, and then to the first deployment in Cambodia. Since then, Japan has participated in 28 different missions, with a total of approximately 12,500 personnel, 97% of which from JSDF.

As a general trend, one can observe that the composition of UN military personnel has changed considerably over the decades. The UN now receives most of his troops from developing nations. Because of this shift, it is essential that their capabilities are enhanced with proper training, and this is why the government of Japan has created projects such as RDEC (first in Africa, now also in Asia) for training engineers, as already mentioned by Mr. Khare. So far, roughly 300 soldiers from 17 countries have completed the programme, with a significant improvement in the quality of the work they can provide. Indeed the training is relatively quick, but has a lasting impact, and can make a major difference on the ground. Besides training, Japan is also committed to the creation of UN manuals, and more in general to the setting of standards and to standardization of practices, so that all teams worldwide can perform their work according to the same specifications.
Furthermore, Japan has completed its National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. Indeed, it is important that women are involved in the peace process, as the study shows that peace agreements are more stable if women are actively involved. Mr. Iwai also stressed Japan’s commitment to Africa, where most of UN peacekeeping missions have taken place. Finally, Mr. Iwai concluded his intervention by stating that many challenges remain, but the commitment to do more and better is there.

※This forum was organized in connection with the MOFA subsidy projects granted to SSU of IFI.