Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

The United Nations in the Congo

1961; SAGE Publishing; Volume: 16; Issue: 1 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1177/002070206101600101

2052-465X

John Holmes,

Peacebuilding and International Security

stake in the Congo is the United Nations role as midwife for the peaceful revolutions of our times which has emerged during the past decade as the best hope for international order. This role is enduring its severest test, and it may be undone by the fury of the passions involved and the sheer weight of a task undertaken in unpropitious circumstances. It is a pragmatic role varying according to circumstances and so resisting definition. In essence, however, it consists in the effort to isolate weak or chaotic areas from the fury of the cold war by interposing the United Nations as a neutral force. The purpose of the intervention is both to permit these areas to stand on their own feet and grow strong and also to prevent them from embroiling the major powers in conflict.