UN General Assembly
1994

Preventive diplomacy is the ideal. But it often will not be enough. We have to be prepared for the demand for peace-keepers to continue. There are practical ways in which we can respond better to that demand: first, by ensuring that we learn the lessons from our experiences in peace-keeping; secondly, by taking practical steps to improve our capacity to keep the peace, especially in Africa; and, thirdly, by reforming our financing system. I should like to say a brief word about peace-keeping. It is often impossible to predict at the outset of a mission what demands or dangers United Nations troops will encounter. Within limits, they must be ready to improvise. But allowing their role to drift from peace-keeping to taking sides in a war carries high risks to the troops themselves, to the political process they support, and to the ability of the United Nations to put in peace-keepers elsewhere. It undermines the willingness of Member States to contribute troops. So in making their decision to contribute to a United Nations operation countries need to be confident that