No reform should hollow out UN peacekeeping: Pakistan

Against a backdrop of multiplying global conflicts and severe financial strain, Pakistan warned at the United Nations that any reform must not "hollow out" the bedrock of UN peacekeeping, the world body's flagship activity.

Speaking at the Challenges Annual Forum 2026, themed "Turning the Tide: Building Momentum for Peace Operations in a Demanding World," Ambassador Usman Jadoon, deputy permanent Representative of Pakistan said, while highlighting the severity of the current financial pressures, and urging the international community not let a temporary liquidity crisis dictate the future of peacekeeping.

The essential challenge is not the perceived decline of peacekeeping, but the preservation of the long-established institutional capacity and political trust required for future deployments, he said in the course of the discussion.

As one of the world's largest troop-contributing nations, Pakistan's stance, in this regard, carries heavy institutional weight.

Over the past six decades, the Pakistani envoy said, more than 270,000 Pakistani peacekeepers have served under the UN flag; 183 have made the ultimate sacrifice. Pakistan is also a host country to one of the UN's oldest peacekeeping missions – United Nations Military Observer Group in India and Pakistan (UNMOGIP), which monitors the LoC in disputed Jammu and Kashmir.

"So, our perspective is shaped both by contributing to peacekeeping and by hosting a mission," Ambassador Jadoon pointed out.

Peacekeeping is the Security Council's primary tool for turning resolutions in New York into reality on the ground, he said. Stripping the Council of a credible peacekeeping capacity paralyzes its ability to halt escalation, shield civilians, and safeguard fragile political processes.

"There is a critical need to distinguish financial pressure from political legitimacy," the Pakistani envoy said.