A key priority for DPKO/DFS in the past year has been the development of an overarching guidance document, UN Peacekeeping Operations: Principles and Guidelines, that aims to provide practitioners and partners with a comprehensive overview of the principles and concepts guiding the planning and conduct of contemporary UN peacekeeping operations. To develop this landmark document, DPKO engaged in a wide consultative process involving a series of “expert-level”, regional workshops, which brought together representatives of the major troop and police contributors, donor countries, UN staff and leading academics. Consultations were also held with Member States and UN system partners in New York to ensure that their views and concerns were fully taken into account. The document constitutes the first attempt in over a decade to clarify the nature and scope of UN peacekeeping operations for the benefit of peacekeeping practitioners and partners. It should be considered a living document that will need to be updated and reviewed to reflect the evolution of UN peacekeeping operations.

"Over the past six decades, United Nations peacekeeping has evolved into a complex, global undertaking. During this time, the conduct of United Nations peacekeeping operations has been guided by a largely unwritten body of principles and informed by the experiences of the many thousands of men and women who have served in the more than 60 operations launched since 1948. This document captures these experiences for the benefit and guidance of planners and practitioners of United Nations peacekeeping operations."