Spoiler Problems And UN Peacekeeping Mission In Donbas

Russia's President Vladimir Putin's proposal for a United Nations peacekeeping deployment in eastern Ukraine in 2017 has given rise to broad discussion regarding the possibility of a UN intervention in Donbas.Although the idea has been brought up several times prior to Putin's proposal,it had not received significant attention until the seemingly new shift in Russia's attitude towards eastern Ukraine.This shift,if genuine(which is questionable),may open a new era of not only Russian-Ukrainian relations,but also the relations between Russia and the West in general.The idea of involving the United Nations as a peacekeeping actor comes naturally:the organization specializes in situations like this and it has high experience in dealing with similar conflicts.The current peacekeeping mechanism and all the attempts to resolve the crisis have failed,therefore,there is an urgent need to design a new and better framework to restore peace in Donbas.Nevertheless,there are numerous factors that question the eligibility and competence of United Nations in this particular conflict.The spoiler problems in eastern Ukraine are highly sensitive and Russia's paradox role further increases the complexity of the crisis.John Stedman's Spoiler Theory highlights the importance of proper diagnosis and management of spoilers.Can the United Nations restore peace in Donbas?What are the attributes that a peacekeeping mission should bear in order to be successful?What are the risks of such a mission,and what are the major local spoilers that could prevent the success of any peaceful peacekeeping mechanism?What is Russia's role and how can it influence the outcome of a UN peacekeeping operation?In my thesis I answer these crucial questions and highlight the spoiler problems in eastern Ukraine that make the United Nations' competence in conflict resolution in Donbas highly doubtful.