Funding Shortfalls Creating ‘Blind Spots’, Peacekeeping Chief Warns, Appeals to Security Council for ‘Unequivocal’ Political Support

Amid a review of United Nations peacekeeping operations, the Security Council heard today that the challenging conditions in which these missions carry out the UN's core purpose of helping to "save succeeding generations from the scourge of war" are being made more complex due to severe financial constraints.

While the last similar meeting centred largely on ceasefire monitoring, today's focused largely on the impact that the Organization's ongoing liquidity crisis is having on the UN's flagship enterprise, and how peacekeeping mandates should be adjusted as a result.

Briefing the Council today were the heads of the military components of two such missions, the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) and the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA).

The Council renewed the mandates for both MINUSCA and UNISFA until 15 November 2026. Meanwhile, the Council's last briefing on the situation on the ground in the Central African Republic centred on combined elections successfully held on 28 December 2025. Earlier that month, indiscriminate drone strikes related to the conflict in Sudan killed six UNISFA peacekeepers in the city of Kadugli.

"Our peacekeeping operations must continue to be flexible and adaptable," said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations. They must remain adaptable and accountable, equipped with capabilities and technologies that allow them to anticipate threats, adapt quickly and operate safely in increasingly complex environments.

"However, technology alone is not a solution," he stressed. It must be accompanied by skilled personnel, sustained training and predictable resources.

Budget Cuts Compromise Situational Awareness, Timely Deployments

Peacekeeping operations have faced "significant financial challenges" over the past year, he said, prompting stringent contingency measures. Although it is too early to assess the full impact of these measures, "we are already seeing major constraints on the ability of the missions to implement their political and protection-of-civilians mandates, as well as to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel," he reported.

To illustrate, he pointed out that the closure of United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) bases has reduced the Mission's situational awareness, early warning capabilities and community reassurance. This is "creating blind spots, limiting proactive interventions and timely deployment to hotspots", he stressed. Moreover, reduced air support has, in turn, reduced emergency responsiveness for the United Nations Mission for the Referendum in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and the United Nations Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO).

Pay Assessed Contributions 'in Full, on Time', Peacekeeping Chief Urges

"Member States must pay their assessed contributions in full and on time to allow us to work effectively in the implementation of the mandates they give us," he underscored. Further, he urged sustained Council support for both peacekeeping operations and "the political efforts they are designed to enable and sustain".

Views from the Field: 'Significant' Impact of Funding Shortfalls in Central African Republic, Abyei

Humphrey Nyone, Force Commander of MINUSCA, then briefed the Council on recent developments in the Central African Republic, which has made "significant strides towards stability, with MINUSCA playing a central role in this progress". The generally peaceful conduct of 28 December 2025 elections and MINUSCA's close coordination with national defence and security forces have strengthened State presence and security in several regions.

At the same time, he cautioned that, "despite these positive developments, the overall security situation remains uneven and fragile". In the east, conditions remain highly precarious due to targeted attacks and serious human-rights violations by armed militias. Farther north, insecurity is aggravated by spillover from the conflict in Sudan. "The threat to MINUSCA is indirect but growing, fuelled by regional instability, border incursions and the potential spread of drone technology," he said.

The Mission has delivered results despite constraints. He pointed to electoral support and disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and repatriation efforts that have led to the disarmament over 1,330 combatants since July 2025. However, "funding shortfalls are not only an administrative challenge", he stressed. "They are affecting operational movements on the ground".

Ganesh Kumar Shrestha, Acting Head of Mission and Force Commander of UNISFA, offered a similar assessment. Personnel reductions, the suspension of quick-impact projects and the departure of most agencies, funds and programmes has both impacted the Force and limited community support. Further, the Force's liquidity contingency plan has introduced "measured risk" into mandate delivery. "The impact of the liquidity crisis on UNISFA is therefore significant," he explained.

Turning to recent developments, he, too, said that the ongoing conflict in Sudan is affecting Force activities. Additionally, political progress has been limited and the security, human-rights and humanitarian situations remain unpredictable, fragile and dire, respectively. And, while Abyei itself remains relatively stable, he stressed that this is "neither automatic nor self-sustaining". Rather, it is actively maintained through UNISFA's continuous political engagement with, and support to, both communities.

He went on to spotlight a "clear evolution" on the ground, reporting that the use of drone warfare - especially around Kadugli, where a UN base was hit during the Sudan conflict - "significantly increased risks to UN personnel and disrupted Mission logistics". UNISFA was forced to abandon that base, as well as two monitoring sites. "This new reality has raised the question of how we can continue supporting the parties in the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone - an area that must remain monitored," he said.

Realistic Mandates, Sustained Resources, Political Support Key to Mission Success

In the following discussion, many Council members underscored the importance of UN peacekeeping. "When the UN saved Liberia, it also saved us from ourselves," recalled that country's representative. The success of the UN mission in Liberia rested on credible mandates, resources aligned with expectations and political processes that were allowed the space to take root. "That experience anchors our conviction that peacekeeping - done right - remains one of multilateralism's most effective tools," he stressed.

Noting his country's participation in that mission, Pakistan's representative emphasized: "There is a lot of hard work, commitment and sacrifice that goes into this success." Taken together, the experiences of UNISFA and MINUSCA illustrate both the continuing need for peacekeeping and its proven effectiveness as a Council instrument. "They also underline a simple, but critical, requirement," he added, stressing that mandates must remain realistic, resources and political support must be provided and peacekeepers must be protected.

Denmark's representative, noting that her delegation intends to deepen the collaboration with Pakistan that began in 2025 to advance effective peacekeeping, similarly underlined the need for sustained political backing, realistic mandates, adequate resources and host States that meet their obligations. "Without these conditions, even the best mission leadership and the bravest personnel will struggle to deliver," she concluded. Latvia's representative added: "No mission should be expected to do more with less."

From Dependence to Resilience, Local Engagement to National Ownership

Some Council members also pointed to the importance of local engagement, with Somalia's representative calling for greater nationalization of UN posts and local procurement. "By investing in local economies, we move away from dependency and towards the resilience needed for self-sustained peace," he said. Peacekeeping missions "cannot substitute politicians", added the representative of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Africa's experience shows that peacekeeping operations must be "part of a credible political dynamic".

China's representative also said that peacekeeping operations must "consistently serve a clearly defined political process". Integrating political settlement into every aspect of such operations is the only way that a mission can "truly deliver results on the ground, successfully conclude its mandate and withdraw accordingly". On such a future transition - specifically that of MINSUCA - France's representative stressed the need to clearly define priorities that will lead to gradually reinforced national ownership and consolidated gains under increasingly challenging security conditions.

The representative of the United Kingdom, in that vein, said that UN missions must be "grounded in robust political strategies" with clear mandates that are matched with the right resources and capabilities. The representative of Greece said that the ongoing review of peacekeeping operations must reinforce the primacy of politics in mandates. He, along with Panama's representative, were among those speakers urging greater cooperation with regional organizations - particularly the African Union.

Adapt or Close

Others highlighted the role that new technologies can play in strengthening missions' ability to respond to evolving threats. Colombia's representative noted that remote sensing and similar systems can enhance situational awareness and help protect personnel implementing mandates on the ground.

The representative of Bahrain, Council President for April, spoke in her national capacity to agree that emerging challenges facing peacekeeping missions in the Central African Republic and Abyei "underscore the growing importance of leveraging modern technologies in field operations". These tools, she said, can aid in monitoring ceasefire violations, anticipating threats and rapidly analysing new data.

More critically, the representative of the Russian Federation said that, despite years of presence and significant budgets, many missions struggle to demonstrate tangible progress. Without an honest assessment of the gap between resources and outcomes, political solutions will remain elusive. "When conditions change, peacekeeping missions need to adapt or close," said the representative of the United States, adding: "Our peacekeepers should always be working themselves out of a job."

Stressing that "none of us should be satisfied" when missions adapt so they can "survive for another year", she declared: "Renewals must be earned, never assumed."