POLICY BRIEF 2014:1 Force Intervention Brigade: A Sea Change for UN Peace Operations?

The Challenges Forum held a panel discussion on the implications of the Force Intervention Brigade for future UN peace operations in New York on 17 January 2014. The meeting was co-hosted with the Permanent Mission of Germany to the United Nations. It brought together senior UN policymakers, national government representatives, and leading peacekeeping experts.

Questions and issues raised during the panel discussion include:

• What were the conditions for success?

• What are the implications for UN peacekeeping’s core principles relating to the use of force, consent of the host country, and impartiality?

• What are the doctrinal implications from the deployment of the intervention brigade? What impact will it have on the principles of ‘the use of force’ in future UN peace operations?

• Is the intervention brigade sui generis or are we witnessing a shift in the types of peace operation mandated? And what are the potential implications for future UN missions in non-permissive environments, such as South Sudan and the Central African Republic (CAR)?