Global peacekeeping is entering its most fragile period in a generation, with a new report warning that chronic underfunding and deepening geopolitical divisions are pushing the international system to the brink.
The Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) released its annual analysis of multilateral peace operations on Monday, ahead of the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on 29 May.
Just 78,633 international personnel were deployed across peacekeeping operations at the end of 2025; a 17% drop in a single year and nearly half the number deployed at the peak in 2016.
“If things continue in this way, we could see a dramatic weakening of multilateral conflict management and the near-complete sidelining of institutions like the United Nations,” said Jair van der Lijn, director of SIPRI’s peace operations and conflict management program.
He attributed the crisis to “a perfect storm of funding, political and geopolitical factors.” At the heart of the collapse is money.
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Major donor nations have repeatedly failed to meet their financial commitments to the UN, leaving peacekeeping operations facing a shortfall of $2 billion, more than 35% of the total budget, by mid-2025.
The UN General Assembly subsequently approved a peacekeeping budget of $5.38 billion for 2025–26, the lowest in at least a decade.
The United States, which is assessed to pay 27% of the UN peacekeeping budget, took what SIPRI described as “significant action” in 2025 to withdraw from, defund, or challenge various UN bodies.
Washington also pushed to terminate the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) during mandate renewal talks in August, despite ongoing ceasefire violations between Israel and Lebanon.
The funding crisis has forced missions in the field to cut staff abruptly and scale back operations. Nearly three-quarters of all deployed peacekeeping personnel are now concentrated in just five missions, leaving many conflict zones with diminished international presence.
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Beyond the financial squeeze, the UN Security Council has become an increasingly dysfunctional arena. Hardline demands and veto threats from permanent members have complicated the renewal of mission mandates.
While regional organizations have stepped in to fill some of the gap, accounting for 34 of the 58 active operations in 2025, SIPRI cautioned that they are no substitute.
“Regional organizations lack key capabilities when it comes to successful, integrated peacebuilding, while they are also plagued by funding shortfalls and inability to reach agreement,” said senior SIPRI researcher Claudia Pfeifer Cruz.
Van der Lijn warned that more conflicts are likely, “and these conflicts are likely to have even graver impacts on civilians as states abandon long-established norms.” Pfeifer Cruz noted that broad support for UN peace operations still exists in principle across member states.
“However, to sustain multilateral conflict management, states will need to go beyond expressions of support; they will need to provide predictable funding and create enough political space to enable effective multilateral responses.”
