Full Breakdown
SIPRI Warns of a “Perfect Storm” Threatening UN Peacekeeping
5/25/2026, 12:03:41 PM
Shrinking Peacekeeping Capacity
At the end of 2025, UN-mandated peacekeeping operations deployed just under 79,000 personnel, the lowest level in 25 years. The number of active missions fell to 58, below the 60-mission threshold for the first time since 2016. About 75 % of staff were stationed in five states—Central African Republic, South Sudan, Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo and Lebanon.
Funding Gap and Donor Shortfalls
SIPRI reports a $2 billion shortfall in the $5.6 billion 2024-2025 peacekeeping budget, as donors failed to meet pledged contributions. The deficit has forced the UN to cut personnel, raising concerns that without reliable financing, multilateral conflict management will further deteriorate.
Security Council Politics
Veto threats from permanent Security Council members have complicated mandate renewals. The United States pressed for an end to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), leading to a compromise that extends the mission only until December 2026. This politicised bargaining limits the UN’s ability to sustain continuous peacekeeping presences.
SIPRI’s Assessment
SIPRI director Dr. Jair van der Lijn calls the combination of falling troop levels, geopolitical tension and funding gaps a “perfect storm” threatening multilateral conflict management. Senior researcher Claudia Pfeifer Cruz says that while there is support for UN peace operations, states must move beyond rhetoric to provide predictable funding and sufficient political space.
Opposition and Criticism
U.S. officials have framed UNIFIL as redundant, linking its continuation to American aid concerns. Critics argue this pattern of donors tying peacekeeping to unrelated policy goals undermines the impartiality and effectiveness of UN missions.
Verbatim Quotes
- “If things continue in this way, we could see a dramatic weakening of multilateral conflict management and the near-complete sidelining of institutions like the United Nations, due to a perfect storm of funding, political and geopolitical factors,” — Dr. Jair van der Lijn, SIPRI
- “The result is likely to be more conflicts, and these conflicts are likely to have even graver impacts on civilians as states abandon long-established norms.” — Dr. Jair van der Lijn, SIPRI
- “There is evidently widespread support for UN peace operations in principle," she said.” — Claudia Pfeifer Cruz, SIPRI
Outlook
The UN secured a renewal of UNIFIL through December 2026, but the peacekeeping system remains vulnerable. SIPRI urges donors to honour commitments and depoliticise mandate decisions, warning that continued erosion could shift crisis response toward unilateral or ad-hoc arrangements.
