Creating a Force for Peace Operations: Ensuring Stability with Justice

Parameters, Winter 2002-03, p. 77-87. In summary, creation of a US force for stability would: Join together all of the elements required to effectively achieve sustainable security under a single, unified authority. Close the security gap that has plagued previous peace operations by providing for a smooth transition from warfighting to institution-building. Establish police and judicial authority from the outset, thus freeing the military to perform its functions and speeding the withdrawal of military forces. Establish the rule of law as a platform from which the other aspects of political, economic, and social reconstruction could go forward in an environment conducive to achieving success. Provide the United States with a force that could partner with similar forces organized by the European Union, the OSCE, and possibly other regional organizations. Allow the United States to support much-needed UN reform by contributing a force that could assist the UN in meeting its responsibilities for international peacekeeping as envisioned in the Brahimi Report.