6 November 2025
The event
Key issues discussed
The event focused on the unique value added of UN Police to peace operations environments and considered how UN police can help contribute to critical tasks like protection of civilians (POC), community engagement, addressing transnational crime, and capacity building in future mission settings. Looking to the future, participants considered how more specialized capacity, including the deployment of specialized police teams, could be used to help meet needs in light footprint models. The role of UN Police in coordinating a range of actors contributing to tasks like crime was also discussed. Finally, participants reiterated the centrality of POC, which must not be compromised with budget cuts or in light footprint settings.
What is being done/to do about them
One impetus for the event was a recognition that there has not been much discussion on the role of UN Police amid a shifting peace operations landscape and that the UN Police Division is yet to articulate a clear vision for how it can uniquely contribute to the future of peace operations. Participants called for UN Police Division to develop a vision for the future of UN Police, similar to those of related institutions like United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) or United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI), as well as an implementation strategy.
Some suggested that UN Police should take a lead role in coordination among entities involved in addressing areas like crime in order to leverage the capacities of the whole system. It will also be key to continue situating UN Police work within the criminal justice chain and other rule of law support.
There may be increased focus on urban settings, inter-communal violence or cyber security, all of which require Member states to become more involved in mobilizing specialized capabilities to address complex threats and specialized tasks.
As decisions about budget cuts are being made, the Secretariat and member states need to be strategic to not compromise priorities like POC. As one speaker noted, when making every decision we should ask “Will this make the UN more or less able to protect individuals from harm?”
What implications emerged for the UNSC and UN HQ
Four main takeaways:
- United Nations Police (UNPOL) needs to develop a vision and strategy for the future of UN police
- For the review, it should be clearly reiterated that POC must remain central to all types of peace operations deployments. Communities will expect this, and it will undermine all other UN efforts if they are not able to respond to key threats to civilian safety and security
- Member states need to focus on mobilizing more specialized capacity that they can deploy to peace operation settings
- Flexible, modular approaches could help address the need for increased efficiencies and specialized capabilities; however, for this to work, the Council and Fifth Committee must be willing and able to mandate and resource missions more flexibly.