The issue of peacekeeping is one of the main factors in the regulation of international relations. It often occupies a prominent place in the conceptions of countries. Historically, the basic principles of international peacekeeping were formulated by the Western powers, as they ideologically dominated international institutions with the United Nations (UN). It is only relatively recently that the major powers among them, Russia and China, have begun to formulate their own peacekeeping principles and put them into practice. The basic objectives of peacekeeping are understood in the same way by Western countries and emerging powers, while the political orientations are divergent. The events in Syria and the involvement of Russia have shown the differences in the two approaches to peacekeeping as a whole and to the participation of outside powers in peacekeeping operations. For the United States and most Europeans, the objective of peacemaking and conflict resolution is to protect individual rights and freedoms and to implement a « democratic transition » aimed at establishing a liberal and democratic regime. For Russia, as for other powers, the objective of peacemaking and conflict resolution is to strengthen the local state so that the state can guarantee order on its territory and stabilise the situation in the country and the region. The proposed article analyses Russia’s approach to the problem of peacekeeping at the theoretical and practical levels.
Keywords: Peace building, peacekeeping, peacekeeping operation, Russia, UN.
