The Stockholm Peace Research Institute (SIPRI) warns that the future of international peace missions is endangered. The number of international personnel deployed in peace operations reached its lowest level in at least 25 years at the end of 2025, the institute announced on Monday. Geopolitical tensions, political pressure, and funding crises are jeopardizing the future of multilateral peace enforcement. By the close of 2025, 78,633 international personnel were active in peace missions, representing a 49 percent decline compared to 2016.
Jair van der Lijn, Director of SIPRI’s Peace Operations and Conflict Management Program, cautioned that this trend could lead to a dramatic weakening of multilateral conflict management, potentially marginalizing institutions like the United Nations almost entirely. He added, “The consequence is likely to be more conflicts, and these conflicts will probably have even more serious impacts on the civilian population, as states renounce long-established norms”.
In 2025, there were 58 multilateral peace missions active across 34 countries or territories, which was three fewer than the previous year. Sub-Saharan Africa and Europe each hosted 18 missions, the Middle East and North Africa hosted 14, the Americas five, and Asia and Oceania three. Almost three-quarters of the personnel were deployed in just five missions, four of which were located in Sub-Saharan Africa. The crisis in funding for UN peacekeeping missions worsened as key donors failed to meet their commitments in a timely or complete manner. In July 2025, UN peace missions were short two billion US dollars, which accounted for over 35 percent of their total budget for 2024-25.
