CDS (II) 2022 General Knowledge · Question 105 of 120

Correct — A, United Nations Peacekeepers. Peacekeepers remain soldiers and police of their own countries and wear their own national uniforms; what marks them as serving the United Nations is the blue helmet or blue beret, and the phrase Blue Helmets has become a synonym for UN peacekeeping itself. The colour was chosen precisely because it is not a combat colour — it is meant to be seen from a distance and read as neutrality rather than as one side of a fight. The first armed operation of this kind was the United Nations Emergency Force, deployed in 1956 during the Suez Crisis as a buffer between Egyptian and Israeli forces, where it stayed until 1967. UN peacekeeping forces were awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988. India is deeply involved: it is currently the fourth largest troop contributor, with 5,165 personnel, behind Nepal, Rwanda and Bangladesh.

• (b)Violent Non-State Actors — The exact opposite. Peacekeepers are deployed by an inter-governmental organisation, on the authority of the Security Council and with the consent of the host state; violent non-state actors — militias, insurgent groups, terrorist organisations — are what peacekeeping missions are often deployed against.
• (c)Civil Society Organisations — Civil society bodies are voluntary and non-governmental. Peacekeepers are uniformed personnel seconded by member states to the UN, and they operate under a Security Council mandate, not a charitable one.
• (d)Environmental Organisations — Nothing environmental about it. The UN's environmental arm is the UN Environment Programme, headquartered at Nairobi, and it fields no uniformed force.

UN peacekeeping is not in the Charter by name; it grew in practice out of the space between Chapter VI, on the pacific settlement of disputes, and Chapter VII, on enforcement — which is why it is sometimes called Chapter Six and a Half. Classical peacekeeping rests on three principles: consent of the parties, impartiality, and no use of force except in self-defence and defence of the mandate. Missions are authorised by the Security Council, staffed by troops and police volunteered by member states, and funded through assessed contributions.

This is a vocabulary question, and the safe route is to notice that three of the options describe civilian or irregular bodies while only one describes uniformed personnel. Helmets imply soldiers; the United Nations is the only actor on the list that fields any. Where the topic earns marks elsewhere is India's record, which is one of the most quotable facts in Indian foreign policy: India has taken part in UN peacekeeping since the 1950s, is among the largest contributors of troops in the organisation's history, and was the first country to send an all-woman contingent to a UN mission, deployed in Liberia. As of 2026 the UN had roughly 53,000 personnel in eleven active missions on a combined budget of about 5.66 billion dollars — a smaller footprint than a decade earlier, as several large African missions have closed.

• Peacekeepers wear their own national uniforms with UN blue helmets or blue berets.
• The first armed peacekeeping operation was the United Nations Emergency Force, deployed in 1956 in the Suez Crisis and withdrawn in 1967.
• UN peacekeeping forces received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1988.
• Around 53,000 personnel serve in eleven active missions as of 2026, on a budget of about 5.66 billion dollars.
• The largest troop contributors are Nepal, Rwanda, Bangladesh, India and Pakistan; India ranks fourth with 5,165 personnel.

• Assuming peacekeepers are a standing UN army — every soldier is lent by a member state and remains in its service.
• Confusing peacekeeping with peace enforcement, which is authorised under Chapter VII and does not require host consent.
• Mistaking Blue Helmets for the blue-vested UN civilian staff, or for observers, who are unarmed.

As a one-line identification of a term, or inside a question on India's contribution and on the principles governing UN missions.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  Which one of the following is not among the three basic principles of United Nations peacekeeping?

  • (a)Consent of the parties
  • (b)Impartiality
  • (c)Non-use of force except in self-defence and defence of the mandate
  • (d)Prior approval of the General Assembly for every deployment

  Answer(d) Prior approval of the General Assembly for every deployment — peacekeeping operations are authorised by the Security Council; the other three are the stated principles.

• practice — not a real PYQ

  The first armed United Nations peacekeeping operation was deployed in 1956 in connection with which crisis?

  • (a)The Korean War
  • (b)The Suez Crisis
  • (c)The Congo Crisis
  • (d)The Cyprus dispute

  Answer(b) The Suez Crisis — the United Nations Emergency Force separated Egyptian and Israeli forces from 1956 until 1967.