CIAO DATE: 04/06

La participación uruguaya en las operaciones de paz de la ONU: los beneficios económicos y sus costos políticos

Abstract

This essay explores the domestic implications of Uruguay’s very active participation in United Nations peacekeeping operations. The author argues that involvement of uniformed officers in UN missions has improved military salaries, enabled military procurement and provided extra incentives for military recruitment. However, Uruguay’s participation in peace missions has been inconsequential for improving civil-military relations. According to the author, despite the initial advantages that civilian policymakers had to carve out military prerogatives, the absence of civilian expertise on peacekeeping matters has increased the military’s policy leverage on defense policies. In this context, the military has institutional autonomy to define peacekeeping policies and rarely consults or informs their superior civilians. Therefore, the Uruguayan case provides a critical example of the potential perverse effects that international peacekeeping participation can have among UN troop-contributing and democratizing countries.

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