Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension

This document is an introduction to a monograph titled "Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension," which compiles edited texts from a series of workshops held in 1999 in Prague, Harare, and Pretoria. The text examines the conceptual and doctrinal gaps in peace support operations, specifically contrasting the limited scope of UN peacekeeping with the more robust peace enforcement capabilities of African coalitions. It highlights the influence of Cold War military doctrines and colonial legacies on current African military approaches and argues for the need for a synthesized, viable doctrine for multinational peace operations in Africa.

• There is a significant gap between the capabilities of the United Nations and African coalitions regarding military intervention; the UN is largely limited to Chapter VI peacekeeping, whereas African coalitions have demonstrated the ability to conduct sustained multinational operations involving "heavy combat engagements."
• The development of a realistic intervention doctrine for Africa is hindered by a focus from Western powers on "UN-type" peacekeeping training, which ignores the shift toward peace enforcement and the need for more "robust" interventions similar to those developed by NATO following experiences in the Balkans.
• African military doctrines are fragmented due to a combination of colonial heritage—split between French and British models—and Cold War influences, where some forces were trained under Russian or Chinese-style doctrines.
• The monograph identifies several regional case studies as sources of doctrinal insight: the Russian Federation's "backyard" peacekeeping in the former USSR, Nigeria's leadership of ECOMOG in West Africa, and South Africa's limited military intervention in Lesotho.

APA

Malan, M. (n.d.). Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.org/research/monographs/monograph-44-boundaries-of-peace-operations-the-african-dimension-edited-by-mark-malan

Chicago

Malan, Mark. Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension. Institute for Security Studies, n.d. https://issafrica.org/research/monographs/monograph-44-boundaries-of-peace-operations-the-african-dimension-edited-by-mark-malan.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Malan |first1=Mark |title=Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |url=https://issafrica.org/research/monographs/monograph-44-boundaries-of-peace-operations-the-african-dimension-edited-by-mark-malan |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{malanndboundaries, author = {Malan, Mark}, title = {{Boundaries of Peace Operations: The African Dimension}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, url = {https://issafrica.org/research/monographs/monograph-44-boundaries-of-peace-operations-the-african-dimension-edited-by-mark-malan}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }