News

Last week, a particularly practice-oriented regional training course on improving humanitarian access took place in Amman, the capital of Jordan. It was organized and conducted by the Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) in cooperation with the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA).

Germany currently supports the EU Advisory Mission Ukraine (EUAM) with 10 civilian experts and three police officers. As a member of an interdepartmental German delegation, ZIF’s Executive Director visited the EUAM in Kyiv at the end of November.

Whether fresh off the press or for digital use: our ZIF world map of peacekeeping missions 2025/2026 is here! Every year, we compile key information on peacekeeping missions and crisis management missions carried out by the UN, EU, OSCE, and other organizations, as well as on the respective German participation of the Bundeswehr, police, and civilian experts.

From 10 to 14 November, the Second Conference on Youth, Peace and Security and YPS Week brought together 120 young peacebuilders, non-governmental organizations, EU institutions, and member states to take stock of YPS at 10 years and co-shape the future of Team Europe action on YPS.

The Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) recently hosted the second Duty-of-Care & Security Meeting in Berlin, welcoming partners from across Europe to address crucial issues surrounding the safety and well-being of personnel deployed in high-risk environments.

From 4 to 7 November 2025, New York hosted the first Peace Operations Review Week, bringing together experts, researchers and practitioners in the field of peace operations and crisis management. The aim was to generate ideas for the upcoming review of the future design of peace operations within the framework of the UN Pact for the Future.

Today, the constituent meeting of the Supervisory Board of the Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) took place—the first since the federal elections and the change of government. With the new legislative period, the ZIF Supervisory Board has also been reconstituted. The Chairperson of the Supervisory Board is Florian Hahn, Minister of State at the German Federal Foreign Office. Markus Koob, member of the German Bundestag, was elected as Deputy Chairperson.

In October, we were able to offer on-site in-mission training for observers and translators from the EU Monitoring Mission in Armenia (EUMA). The aim was to train participants in conversation and interview techniques, thereby strengthening their communication and teamwork skills in the field.

Ten years ago, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2250 on the Youth, Peace and Security (YPS) agenda, which recognizes the important role of young people in peace processes and in building sustainable security. ZIF is marking this anniversary with a training course and conference that underscore the continued importance of the YPS agenda for international peace work and crisis management.

The meeting of the Deputy Special Representatives of the Secretary-General (DSRSGs) focused on current developments, challenges, and opportunities in peace missions. As in previous years, the DSRSG Dialogue was organized by ZIF and the United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC) and supported by the German Federal Foreign Office. 

The Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) recently invited a group of dedicated civilian coordinators to an intensive exchange. These experts are active in international peace missions such as EULEX in Kosovo or Ukraine and play a central role as contact persons for all matters relating to mission work on the ground—whether it be questions of security, cooperation, or difficult contractual issues.

The Center for International Peace Operations (ZIF) was represented in several sessions at this year's Berlin Climate and Security Conference (BCSC) at the Federal Foreign Office in Berlin. The conference was held under the motto “Climate, Conflict, and Cooperation in a Turbulent Era” and brought together high-level representatives from governments, international organizations, academia, and civil society.

For us, the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda has been a source of motivation, a framework for action, and a guiding principle since it came into force. By sending civilian experts on peace missions and to multilateral organizations, and through targeted knowledge transfer and political consulting, we can actively contribute to its implementation.

German civil expert Lena Ellen Becker has been nominated for the UN Women Trailblazer Award for Justice and Correction Officers 2025. She is currently seconded by ZIF and the German Foreign Office to the UN Mission in South Sudan, where she is particularly committed to promoting justice in rural areas and the legal participation of women. 

During her visit to Berlin, Maria Telalian, Director of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR), came to the ZIF for talks on election observation, democratization efforts and international crisis resolution. 

Partners and members of the EU Training Initiative (EUTI) met for a kickoff meeting in Brussels to start EUTI's ambitious work. 15 civilian, police, and military training institutions all over Europe, including ZIF, are coordinating their efforts to offer needs-based, high-quality, up-to-date, and Europe-wide standardized training courses.

We are broadening our portfolio of interesting secondment options with the UN Department of Safety and Security (UNDSS) and can now contribute expertise from Germany to the UN's global security management.

From 1 to 28 August 2025, we are opening our personnel pool for the area of peace operations expertise. 

‘Strengthening humanitarian response capacities worldwide’ is the title of the annual report and also the guiding principle of the Standby Partnership Network, which comprises various international and national organisations that provide experts for UN partner organisations for humanitarian crisis response at short notice. 

In our ZIF XChange format, we discussed how humanitarian aid can still be implemented under difficult budgetary conditions and what new approaches and, if necessary, alliances are needed.