SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON PEACEKEEPING OPERATIONS (C34) GENERAL DEBATE
Statement on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand (CANZ)
Delivered by Ms. Emily Byrne, Defence Policy Adviser, Australian Mission to the United Nations
19 February 2026
I have the honour to deliver this statement on behalf of Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
CANZ acknowledges and pays tribute to all peacekeepers – military, police and civilians – who are selflessly deployed in the service of peace. We honor and mourn those who have made the ultimate sacrifice.
UN Peace operations remain one of the most impactful tools we have to build and sustain peace.
They offer a lifeline to communities devastated by conflict.
And they can be a pivotal step towards lasting peace.
However, multilateralism is under strain. Conflict globally is at record high levels. And Peacekeepers face growing threats to their safety and security.
As CANZ, our focus is on how to improve and invest in peacekeeping – including in transition processes.
We welcome efforts underway, through UN80 and the Secretary General’s review on the future of peace operations.
This reform agenda offers an important opportunity for peacekeeping. To reflect on shortfalls; address systemic challenges and build new partnerships.
We trust that the focus will remain on practical, implementable reforms which maximise impact in the field.
In this context, let me outline three priorities for CANZ in this upcoming C34 session.
First, we are focused on strengthening the foundations of peacekeeping.
This starts with a clear political strategy which orients mission mandates and planning towards measurable objectives.
It also includes our commitment to the Women, Peace and Security agenda as central to operational effectiveness and sustainable peace.
Reducing barriers to women’s deployment and creating safe, enabling environments – through initiatives like the Elsie Initiative Fund – remains a top priority.
CANZ also wants adequate resourcing and political attention for protection mandates, including protection of civilians and humanitarian workers, child protection, conflict-related sexual violence and human rights.
We need more effective early warning mechanisms, better integration of mission components; and greater accountability of mission leadership to plan and deliver these core tasks.
All of these require Member States to pay their assessed contributions in full.
Second, CANZ will prioritize the safety and security of all peacekeepers.
Today, many peacekeepers face unacceptable restrictions on their freedom of movement, undermining their ability to fully utilise new technologies.
Armed drones are being used for targeted attacks.
And improvised explosive devices continue to pose a threat.
Ensuring that equipment, medical support and infrastructure reflect the needs of all personnel, including women, is essential to operational readiness.
This session, CANZ will focus on concrete ideas to strengthen partnerships, including with host states, to improve accountability and mandate delivery.
Third, CANZ will prioritize delivering an action-oriented consensus report this year.
As we approach the upcoming session, having failed to reach agreement on a substantive report last year, we urge delegations to reflect on why this committee matters.
For more than 60 years the C34 has set the agenda on peacekeeping policy.
It has served as a forum where all contributors to peacekeeping – no matter how big or small – have a say in shaping its future direction.
It blends political and operational expertise.
And it has kept pace with the need to reform its own working methods, having successfully adapted the C34 report structure and moved towards a more efficient biennial cycle.
For these reasons, CANZ will work pragmatically and constructively to adopt a set of action-oriented recommendations which will improve peacekeeping. We count on others to do the same.
It is critical that we seize this opportunity to reform the peacekeeping toolkit. And, to urge the UN to step up and offer bold ideas and scalable options on peace and security.
Thank you.