To the core, and then: The UN will reduce the peacekeeping contingent by a quarter

On Thursday, October 9, it became known that the United Nations (UN) was forced to reduce the number of its peacekeeping missions around the world by 25% due to lack of funding. The approximate number of military personnel affected is 13-14 thousand. Read more about the abbreviations, their causes, as well as the "blue helmets" in the Izvestia article.

The UN is reducing the peacekeeping contingent: what is known, the reasons

On October 9, the Reuters news agency, citing a senior UN official, reported that the Organization was going to reduce a quarter of its peacekeeping contingent in the coming months due to insufficient funding.

In addition to the UN peacekeeping troops, which are also called "Blue Helmets," the cuts will affect police, civilian personnel and equipment purchases. In total, about 13-14 thousand mission staff will be dismissed. The total number of "blue Helmets", according to the latest data, is about 68 thousand people from more than 120 countries of the world, they serve in 11 UN peacekeeping missions.

In an interview with Reuters, an unnamed official blamed non-payers among UN members, including the United States, for the reduction of the mission.

Currently, UN peacekeeping missions are present in the following countries and territories: Central African Republic (CAR), South Sudan, Lebanon, Cyprus, Kosovo, Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Western Sahara, India, Pakistan, and the Middle East.

The blame lies with the USA

The United States is the largest donor to the United Nations in the field of peacekeeping. They account for more than 26% of contributions, followed by China, which contributes about 24%. It is important to note that payments are not voluntary. Each UN Member State is obliged to contribute an appropriate share of the costs of peacekeeping activities.

After taking office in January, US President Donald Trump initiated a review of relations with the UN and other international organizations. Since January, the United States has already announced its withdrawal from a number of UN agencies, including the UN Human Rights Council (HRC), the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), and the World Health Organization (WHO).

In addition to withdrawing from the organizations, Trump also announced a reassessment of UN funding. At the end of September 2025, during the 80th session of the UN General Assembly, Trump said that the UN had "enormous potential," but the organization was "not even close" to realizing it.

"All I got from the UN was a broken escalator and a teleprompter," Trump said at the time.

Recall that during the arrival of the American president at the UN headquarters, the escalator he was climbing stopped working, and the teleprompter broke at the beginning of his speech.

According to Reuters, the United States already owes the United Nations almost $3 billion. In 2026, the United States also proposed to stop funding peacekeeping missions, citing the failures of operations in Mali, Lebanon and the DRC.

"Blue Helmets": what is known about UN peacekeeping missions

The UN peacekeeping missions appeared in the early years of the organization's creation. It all started in 1948 with the establishment of control over the observance of the truce between Israel and the Arab States during the Arab-Israeli war of 1948-1949. In 1956, during another mission, blue berets and helmets were used for the first time, which became the symbol of UN peacekeepers.

UN military personnel can be deployed to ensure security in the conflict zone and during elections, monitor peace processes in post-conflict zones and disputed border areas, protect UN personnel, civilians and property, work with local communities, promote peace and other operations.

Since 2002, the International Day of UN Peacekeepers has been celebrated on May 29. It was established in order to pay tribute to the employees of all UN peacekeeping contingents and to honor the memory of those who died in service since 1948.