UN Peacekeeping Delay Sparks Debate Over Air Strike Procedures

Strategic Insights -

As the United Nations grapples with the slow response in approving a NATO air strike against Serbian guns in Bosnia, the top UN official overseeing peacekeeping operations, Yasushi Akashi, has come under scrutiny for attempting to warn Serbian leaders before approving the strike. Akashi's efforts to reach the leaders, which were unsuccessful, took over three hours, causing a delay in the approval process. This episode has sparked a heated debate among Western diplomats and military officials over whether UN command procedures for using air strikes to protect peacekeeping troops are too slow.

Key Takeaways:

  • The attempted warning by Yasushi Akashi, the UN representative in the region, contributed to a delay of over three hours in approving a NATO air strike against Serbian guns.
  • The delay enabled the Serbs to withdraw from the area where they had been shooting, and the American gunships never fired.
  • UN officials defended Akashi's attempts to warn the Serbs as an effort to avoid unnecessary bloodshed, but Western military officials say it is symptomatic of the UN's reluctance to use force.
  • The incident raised concerns about the UN's slow response to approving air strikes to protect peacekeepers.
  • The French Foreign Minister, Alain Juppe, has criticized the slow response of UN commanders in approving the raid.
  • The Clinton administration has pledged to send American troops to enforce a peace settlement in Bosnia and wants to assure Congress that they will be well protected.
  • A UN official acknowledged that the delay was too long and is reviewing its procedures.

Statistics:

  • The delay in approving the NATO air strike against Serbian guns lasted over three hours.
  • The UN is reviewing its procedures for approving air strikes to protect peacekeepers.
  • The incident has sparked a debate among Western diplomats and military officials over whether UN command procedures are too slow.
  • The UN has acknowledged that the delay was too long and is owed to the time it took for UN military commanders to forward the request for air strikes to Akashi for his approval.

Sources:

  • Washington Post
  • New York Times
  • United Nations officials
  • Western diplomats and military officials
  • French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe
  • US Secretary of State Warren Christopher