AMBASSADOR POWER: Thank you so much Mr. Chairman,
Ranking Member Cardin, for convening this hearing. And thank
you all, distinguished members of the committee, for making time to be here to discuss peacekeeping.
This Committee is acutely aware of the extent to which conflicts on the other side of the
globe can come back and threaten American security. We’ve seen time and again how
conflicts can displace millions of people, upend markets, and destabilize entire regions.
All too recently and all too frequently, we’ve seen how such instability can attract and
enable violent extremist groups, who exploit the vacuum of authority to terrorize civilians,
recruit new members, and plan, launch, or inspire attacks.
UN Peacekeepers play a vital role in the international community’s efforts to address war, violence,
and instability. As President Obama said in September, “We know that peace operations
are not the solution to every problem, but they do remain one of the world’s most important
tools to address armed conflict.” Peacekeepers can help resolve conflict, shore up stability,
deny safe harbor to extremists, and protect civilians from atrocities – all of which
serve core American interests and reflect deep American values, while ensuring greater
burden-sharing by the international community.
This Administration has consequently been working aggressively to ensure that UN peacekeeping
operations are better able to meet the demands of international peace and security, which
as has been noted by both the Chairman and the Ranking Member, those requirements have
changed considerably over just the last 20 years. Peacekeepers today are undertaking
more missions; the number of uniformed personnel has risen from fewer than 20,000 fifteen years
ago to over 100,000 today. They’re assuming greater risk; two-thirds of peacekeepers are
operating in active conflicts, the highest percentage in history. And they’re assigned
broad and increasingly complex responsibilities – ranging from disarming armed groups to
facilitating the safe delivery of humanitarian aid to protecting civilians from those who
wish them harm. Today, 98 percent of uniformed personnel in UN missions around the world
are under orders to protect civilians as part of their mandate. This is not the peacekeeping
– your mother’s peacekeeping, your father’s peacekeeping, your grandfather’s peacekeeping
– it has evolved significantly.
While peacekeeping has never been more important to American interests, it has also never been
more demanding. And that is why in September President Obama issued the first presidential
memorandum on multilateral peace operations in more than 20 years, directing a wide range
of actions to strengthen and modernize UN operations – including by building partner
capacity, providing U.S. support, and leading reform of UN peacekeeping. I just want to
briefly, Mr. Chairman, touch on a few key lines of effort that we have pursued. These
are described in greater detail in my written submission.
First, we are working to ensure that countries with the will to perform 21st century peacekeeping,
that they have the capacity to do so. One way we are doing this is through the African
Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership, or APRRP, which President Obama announced in
August 2014. Through APRRP, the United States is investing in the capacity of six African
countries that have proven themselves leaders in peacekeeping; in exchange, these countries
have committed to maintain the forces and equipment necessary to deploy rapidly. This
initiative builds upon the Global Peace Operations Initiative launched under President George
W. Bush – which is our primary tool for building partner nation peacekeeping capacity
– and it will help ensure that more soldiers deployed for peacekeeping missions will be
fully prepared. I hope that the Senate and House will fully fund this important initiative
in future years.
Second, we are expanding the pool of troop- and police-contributing countries, and bringing
advanced militaries back into peacekeeping. In September, President Obama convened a historic
high-level summit – the first of its kind – at the UN to rally new commitments to
peacekeeping, marking the culmination of a year-long effort initiated by Vice President
Biden at the previous UN General Assembly. Forty-nine countries participated and pledged
nearly 50,000 additional troops and police. Not only that – more of these troops will
now come from advanced militaries, who bring with them equipment and expertise that is
critically needed on the ground. We saw this in Mali in January this year, when Dutch attack
helicopters helped Bangladeshi infantry repel rebels who had opened fire on their camp,
where civilians were taking refuge. The United States is making contributions in this respect
as well – as one part of our unrivaled contribution to global peace and security – looking specifically
for ways to leverage our military’s unique capabilities to support peacekeeping operations,
including by enabling faster deployment by others.
Third, we are working to ensure a higher standard of performance and conduct once peacekeeping
contingents are deployed, specifically in two critical areas: the complete fulfillment
of their mandates, and the combatting of sexual exploitation and abuse. The additional troops
generated by the President’s September summit will prove invaluable to both goals, by allowing
the UN to be more selective as to which troops it deploys, and now giving it the leverage
to repatriate poorly performing troops and police when necessary, and especially of course
in instances where there are credible allegations of sexual abuse.
With respect to mandate, when peacekeepers deploy in volatile situations, they have to
be prepared to use force to defend themselves, to protect civilians, and to otherwise carry
out their mandated tasks. Too often in the past, peacekeepers have shied away, even when
atrocities are being perpetrated. A report by the UN’s internal oversight office in
March last year found that in 507 attacks against civilians from 2010 to 2013, peacekeepers
virtually never used force to protect those coming under attack. Thousands of civilians
likely lost their lives as a result. This cannot continue. And a growing number of leading
troop contributors agree; the 50,000 additional troops and police should enable more capable,
more willing troops and police to staff these missions.
The same is true on sexual exploitation and violence. And let me just state the obvious
here: we share the outrage of everyone on this committee, all of the American people
who are focused on this issue, peacekeepers must not abuse civilians. Sexual abuse and
exploitation have no place – it goes without saying, again – in any society. It is especially
abhorrent when committed by those who take advantage of the trust that communities are
placing in the United Nations, and those responsible must be held accountable. Addressing this
scourge will require continuing the important efforts begun by Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
to strengthen the implementation of a zero-tolerance policy – including bolstering reporting
and accountability measures, and pledging to set up an immediate response team to investigate
certain cases. It will also require more vigilance and follow-through from troop-contributing
countries. There must also be far more transparency in these investigations, to track cases and
ensure that justice is served. The UN should be able to take advantage now of this newly
expanded pool of soldiers and police by suspending from peacekeeping any country that does not
take seriously the responsibility to investigate and, if necessary, prosecute credible allegations.
The fourth and final priority, Mr. Chairman, is to press for bold institutional reforms
within the UN itself. We have seen the UN secretariat make profound changes to peacekeeping,
from improved logistics and sustainment, to a more comprehensive approach to crisis situations
that integrates military, police, and civilian tools. But much, much more needs to be done,
and we have spearheaded efforts to enact further reforms, including longer troop rotations
to preserve institutional memory, penalties for troops who show up without the necessary
equipment to perform their duties. And we will continue to work aggressively to cut
costs. The UN has already – thanks to U.S. leadership – cut the per-peacekeeper costs
by roughly 17 percent since 2008. We are also working to advance the reforms proposed by
the Secretary-General’s High-Level Independent Panel on UN Peace Operations, which are intended
to address inadequate planning, slow troop deployment, uneven mission leadership, breakdowns
in command-and-control, and a current set of rules around human resources and procurement
designed for the conference rooms of New York, and not the streets of Bangui.
Let me conclude. In all of the areas I’ve just described, we’ve seen improvements,
and the United States has played an instrumental role in making them possible. But there is
much more to be done. We are not satisfied with peacekeepers fulfilling only parts, but
not all, of their mandates; with peacekeepers standing up to protect civilians in some,
but not all, situations; or with soldiers being held accountable for crimes or misconduct
some, but not all, of the time. The role played by peacekeepers today is too important. For
the sake of our own interests and security, as well as the millions of innocent people
around the world whose lives may depend on peacekeepers, we will continue working to
strengthen peacekeeping so that it is tailored for the 21st century threats peacekeepers
face. We appreciate your interest and support and continued dialogue on these matters.
Thank you.