UN General Assembly
1995

complex emergencies. Important initiatives have already been taken in this regard with the development of the United Nations stand-by arrangements system. Such arrangements might perhaps be extended to other areas to ensure that a full range of humanitarian, logistical and civil defence as well as military options is available to the United Nations in dealing with the many crises which it is called upon to address. In Ireland we are actively exploring the possibility of bringing together a humanitarian liaison group comprising experts from a wide range of fields which could be deployed at short notice when emergencies occur. Command and control of United Nations operations also needs to be improved. Greater attention needs to be paid to ensuring that the distinction between peace-keeping and peace enforcement is not blurred in devising mandates for operations, if the confidence and willingness of troop- contributing countries to continue providing troops is to be maintained. Regional organizations can also play a valuable role in support of United Nations peace-keeping activities. It is of course essential that such organizations in carrying out their