The development of kazakhstan’s peacekeeping capabilities as an important factor for strengthening national security

Abstract. The article considers the content and current trends of peacekeeping activities which in modern conditions become one of the most important components for strengthening the international security, one of the main tools of the world community for early detection and timely prevention of the emerging military-political crises and the military conflicts by political means. Since modern peacemaking represents a complex and many-sided problem in which political and military actions are closely interconnected, the article analyses the legislative framework regulating peacekeeping operations, reveals international legal and military problems reducing efficiency of international efforts on peacekeeping. The article also analyses participation of the Kazakhstan contingent in peacekeeping operations and offers recommendations about activation of our country’s participation in peacekeeping process of the UN and other international organizations.

Introduction

In modern conditions intensity in a number of regions of the world promptly increases. The probability of the development of crisis situations into open armed conflicts in Africa, in the Middle East, in the former Soviet Union became higher. Prolonged and difficult to settle military operations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Ukraine are an eloquent testimony of the escalation of unpredictable on the consequences and difficultly controlled armed conflicts.

Characteristic feature of the modern military conflicts is shift from the interstate plane into the plane internal state one. As a rule, the ethnic and interfaith antagonism, separatism aggravated by the crisis phenomena in all areas of public life becomes a reason for them. These conflicts are often followed by violations of the human rights and crimes against humanity, death of the civilian population, and destruction of key objects of physical infrastructure.

For this reason the world community, first of all, on behalf of the UN makes considerable efforts for the prevention, localization and termination of such conflicts. The interests of the international security require intervention of the UN member countries in such conflicts by carrying out peacekeeping operations.

The Republic of Kazakhstan considers peacekeeping activities as the most important component of the policy on strengthening collective and national security, considers it one of the main instruments of early detection and timely prevention emerging military-political crises and the military conflicts by political means ("About approval of the Military doctrine of the Republic of Kazakhstan" Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, March 21, 2007 N 299. URL: http://adilet .zan.kz/rus/ docs/U000000334 [access: 1.08.2016]).

The purpose of peacekeeping activities is the termination of armed conflict and creation of the conditions promoting its political settlement.

The military doctrine of the Republic of Kazakhstan determines accomplishment of the international liabilities on peacekeeping and security, including participation in peacekeeping activities within accomplishment of relevant decisions (resolutions) of the UN Security Council among the main objectives of our state’s defensive policy ("About approval of the Military doctrine of the Republic of Kazakhstan" Decree of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan, October 11, 2011 N 161. URL: http://adilet .zan. kz/rus/docs/U1100000161 [access: 1.08.2016]).

Therefore the subject of the article is actual both with theoretical and practical points of view.

Research methods

The theoretical and methodical basis of research includes system, comparative, problematical and other general scientific approaches, and also a wide range of methods in modern military science, political science and some other interdisciplinary sciences.

The research applies the interdisciplinary approach based on the general methodological approaches accepted in the military science, political science, diplomacy, the international relations and the theory of security revealing the existing methods and the analysis of the international conflicts.

The research of the declared subject demanded application of various research methods: the system analysis, logical (the analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy, generalization) methods, and also the methods of establishing causes and effect relationships of the researched processes, methods of formalization and idealization, operations research and other general scientific methods.

It promoted the complex assessment of content, concepts and conclusions stated in documents of the UN, other international organizations, and also in regulations of Kazakhstan and other countries in which fundamental provisions on peacekeeping activities are formulated.

Use of system and complex approaches to studying of content and current trends of peacekeeping activities, to the analysis of the legislative framework regulating carrying out peacekeeping operations allowed revealing a number of the international legal and military problems reducing efficiency of international efforts on peacekeeping.

Besides, special methods of military science, military forecasting, generalization of experience of carrying out operations; analysis of experience of peacekeeping doctrines were used for the analysis of gained experience of peacekeeping activities, identification of the available allowances and opportunities for activation of the Kazakhstan contingent’s participation in peacekeeping operations under the auspices of the UN and other international organizations.

The logic of a formulation of conclusions and recommendations proceeded from the principles of deduction, they are made on the basis of the analysis and generalization of the available documents and historic facts.

1. Content and modern trends of peacekeeping activity

Since the second half of the XX century peacekeeping process has begun to play a special role in the international relations as peacekeeping activities directly influence the world reorganization in interests of ensuring the collective and international security. In the new century the peacemaking role even more increased. It is connected with new nature of the conflicts. Only the few of modern crises have nature of the interstate conflicts for which mechanisms of collective security of the UN and the regional unions were created. They are succeeded by civil wars, internal interethnic and interfaith armed conflicts. The violence thus arising does not keep within the commonly accepted war regulations, it uses all means, including the most sophisticated and barbarous, leads to numerous loss of life. Therefore in modern conditions, the problems of prevention and settlement of armed conflicts during which the civilian population generally perishes and suffers, act into the forefront in policy of many states and international organizations.

The term "peacekeeping" in that sense in which it is used in the UN, means application of diplomatic means with the purpose to convince the party participating in the conflict to stop military operations and during negotiations to settle the dispute by peaceful manner.

Meanwhile, in attempt to give not ordinary, but scientifically exact and politically accurate interpretation of peacekeeping, the lack of its conventional determination is being revealed.

The analysis of the UN and other international organizations documents, and also national regulations of various countries shows that in general the collective actions of the international organizations (the UN, OSCE, the CIS, etc.) of political, economic, military and other nature which are carried out according to regulations and the principles of international law for the purpose of solving of international disputes, prevention and the termination of armed conflicts mainly by peace methods are usually considered as peacekeeping activities [1].

Kazakhstan legislation also provides definition of peacekeeping activities. So, the law "About Peacekeeping Activities of the Republic of Kazakhstan" which was adopted on June 15, 2015 states that in relation to such activities of our state, it is set of the measures including the means and methods corresponding to purpose and tasks of the UN Charter, with implementation of the military and (or) civil personnel directed on prevention, control and the termination of armed conflicts between the states or within the state by means of intervention of the third party and promoting peacekeeping and security, humanitarian assistance according to the international liabilities accepted by the Republic of Kazakhstan (The law of the Republic of Kazakhstan of June 15, 2015 No. 320-V "About peacekeeping activities of the Republic of Kazakhstan". URL: http://online .zakon.kz/Docu- ment/doc_id=39843849 [access: 1.08.2016]).

Thanks to purposeful activity of the UN, the international practice under generalized concept of peacekeeping activities has implemented such innovations as peace support operations, humanitarian operations, missions for supervision and establishment of the facts of aggression, post-conflict peace-building and others [2].

Peacekeeping is performed by different methods and means which change together with development of a geopolitical situation in the world and a condition of society conflict environment in various countries.

From the moment of expansion of the UN first peacekeeping mission in 1948 over 120 countries voluntary made available about 800 thousand military personnel and police officers to the UN. Together with thousands of civil specialists they took part in 68 peace support operations.

Within the last ten years on average 15 peacekeeping operations with participation of thousands of the military personnel, police officers and civil specialists from the different states are performed annually. The period of 2008, when the UN took part in settlement of 17 conflicts was the most intense. The budget of peacekeeping activities at that time constituted about 4 billion dollars.

Now the UN carries out 16 peacekeeping missions, 9 of them on the African continent. The largest of them are:

1. The United Nations mission on stabilization in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MO- NUSCO) where the number of the military and police personnel from 55 countries constitutes 19 784 people, the international civil personnel - 840 people, the local civil staff - 2725 people and volunteers of the UN – 450 people;
2. The mixed operation of the African union and the UN in Darfur (UNAMID) in Sudan where the number of the military and police personnel from 46 countries constitutes 17 754 people, the international civil personnel - 845 people, the local civil staff - 2565 people and volunteers of the UN – 169 people;
3. United Nations mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS) where the number of the military and police personnel from 60 countries constitutes 12 523 people, the international civil personnel – 769 people, the local civil staff - 1204 people, volunteers of the UN – 409 people;
4. Multi-profile complex United Nations mission on stabilization in Mali (MINUSMA) with a number of the military and police personnel from 48 countries - 10 207 people; the international civil personnel – 578 people, the local civil staff - 682 people, volunteers of the UN – 124 people;
5. Multi-profile complex United Nations mission on stabilization in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA) where the number of the military and police personnel from 47 countries constitutes 10 806 people, the international civil personnel – 462 people, the local civil staff – 219 people and volunteers of the UN – the 76th persons.
6. Peacekeeping mission of UNIFIL - Temporary forces of the UN in Lebanon has considerable scales with military personnel from 36 countries constituting 10 410 people, the international civil personnel – 279 people, the local civil staff – the 590th persons. (The UN peacekeeping operations. URL: http://www.un.org/ru/peacekeeping/opera- tions/current.shtml [access: 26.07.2017]).

The UN peacekeeping activity is based on the principles of joint execution of burden and distribution of risks, and, eventually, it manages much cheaper than unilateral measures. The countries of the European Union, for example, finance up to 40% of all expenses connected with peacekeeping activities, but there are only 10% of Europeans in peacekeeping forces. The USA finance more than 25% of all expenses on peacekeeping activities, but only lightly more than 80 American citizens participate in 8 peacekeeping operations.

The greatest number of citizens is sent to structure of the peacekeeping contingents by Bangladesh (9 432 people), Ethiopia (8 309 people), India (7 794 people) and Pakistan (7 533 people) (the UN peacekeeping operations. URL: http://www.un.org/ru/peacekeeping/op- erations/current.shtml [access: 26.07.2017]).

For a long time developing countries provide the greatest number of the military personnel and police officers for peace support operations, their share nearly two thirds of the UN peacekeepers.

During the considered period the scales of peacekeeping operations have sharply increased, the number of the personnel participating in them has significantly risen. And, if earlier peacekeeping forces carried out only control and dividing functions, now they are attracted for the purpose of peacemaking (enforce the peace by force methods).

Thus, from initial understanding of peacemaking as activities for non-admission of violence in relation to anybody there is a considerable transformation of its content.

Actions of military nature, namely, the UN peacekeeping operations are performed in two forms:

1) the UN military observers’ missions for observing a truce and cessation of hostilities;

2) sending the UN armed forces recruited from various countries ("blue helmets") into the "hot spots". A role of these armed forces is absolutely different, than in case of implementation of the UN forced actions. They do not conduct military operations against belligerent parties, armed with light weapons and use it only for self-defense. The troops watch the termination of military operations, as well as military observers of the UN, and also are used for separation of warring parties, creation of buffer zones between them and other similar tasks.

Analysis shows that there has been no single, strictly verified and approved terminology describing peacekeeping operations until now.

Specifics of various types of peacekeeping operations allow three large blocks to be distinguished:

The first – using mainly not force methods of actions armed forces (supervision, various forms of control) for a reinforcement of political and diplomatic efforts on the termination and settlement of the conflict;

The second - a combination of political methods with active operations of the armed peacekeeping contingents, however, not conducting military operations;

The third – using force methods, including military operations to enforce the peace in combination with political efforts or without them.

The UN peacekeeping operations essentially were originally based on three interconnected principles:

1. agreement of both conflicting parties;
2. neutrality;
3. minimum use of force, generally – for the self-defense purpose.

In recent years during the major peacekeeping operations all these three principles underwent to a new interpretation. There is an essential expansion of the appropriate authority which is often beyond traditional peacekeeping actions and followed by auxiliary structures in the form of the military contingents and military equipment provided to the UN forces.

The UN continues to remain a principal body on prevention and settlement of armed conflicts. However, in recent years, there is even more clear tendency of displacement of efforts on security provision from global to regional level. The UN, along with own activities on conflict resolution, even more often attracts the regional organizations, including OSCE and NATO, for peacekeeping operations. Peacekeeping operations of multinational forces in the territory of the former Yugoslavia and on the African continent are a striking example of it.

Such expansion of a framework affected structure of participants in peacekeeping process, in recent years, a process of redistribution of roles in peacemaking between the UN and regional security structures appeared as a result. This tendency has objective character and reflects realities of the modern world.

Actually in case of implementation of peacekeeping functions by the UN and other international organizations one more qualitatively new tendency which consists in washing out of distinctions between actually peacekeeping actions and enforcement measures is created. It is closely connected with a tendency to downgrade a role of the required agreement of warring parties as to the prerequisite of the organization and carrying out peacekeeping operation. Some operations of the UN are performed according to Chapter VII of the UN Charter that does not necessarily need agreement of warring parties. Sometimes enforcement measures, including military ones, are undertaken not by the Security Council, but one of the regional militarypolitical organizations. Such intervention took place in three serious crises in the last years (the North of Iraq, the former Yugoslavia, Somalia) and was followed by change of approaches to carrying out peacekeeping operations.

Besides, the purposes of some operations are beyond mediation or supervision, and may include creation of conditions for safe delivery of the humanitarian assistance or protection of certain areas against military actions. In all similar cases the traditional principles of the minimum use of force and self-defense do not always work.

Recently, a number of tendencies appeared in approaches of the international organizations (the UN, OSCE, NATO) to peacekeeping operations which generally consist in recognition by the international community of the right and an obligation to assume responsibility for providing with all means, including force, the peace, law and order, and safety of citizens in those states in which for any reasons these fundamental living conditions can't be provided by national means.

So, now in the UN practice it is considered normal to attract armed forces at any stages of the conflict, including without coordination with conflicting parties (though under the mandate of the international organizations) for accomplishment of preventive, mediation, humanitarian and other functions in the conflict region.

The military contingents of the UN, contrary to the criteria occurring earlier, in a number of peacekeeping operations (in the former Yugoslavia, Somalia) used not only light, but also heavy weapon, armored machinery and aircraft.

If earlier the mandate of the UN recommended limiting use of force by self-defense, formulations including "preventive defense", "prosecution" and "replacement" of the resisting groups, preventive placement of armed forces and "preventive demonstration of force" now start practicing in the international armed conflicts.

Certainly, regional and subregional structures shall have some freedom of action in response to crisis situations, however, it shall occur in case of indispensable accounting of provisions of chapter VIII of the UN Charter, respect of the predominating role of the UN Security Council in the international security.

In general, the analysis of experience of carrying out peacekeeping operations within the last decade allowed the main tendencies of modern peacekeeping process to be revealed.

The first. Transition from intervention mainly in interstate conflicts (specific to 1940- 1970ss) to a broader and frequent intervention in the internal conflicts.

The second. Expansion of the scales of intervention, quantity of operations going in parallel, as well as the size of the countries presented in operations and the involved contingents.

The third. There is a shift of accents to operations on enforcement to the peace.

The fourth. There is a delegation of power on settlement of regional crises from the UN to the regional military-political organizations, and in some cases - even to the certain states. The number of operations performed by the regional organizations, as independently, so and in cooperation or at the request of the UN, has increased. Often the initiative and responsibility not only for a military stage of operaions, but also for political settlement, passes from the UN to other international organizations and the coalitions of the states.

The fifth. Peacekeeping operations become more and more complex and multicomponent.

The sixth. Enhance the transfer of military operations planning and command and their stages to a military management of the certain countries and groups of the states.

The seventh. Strict demarcation between peacekeeping operations and peace-making operations (enforcement to the peace) is blurred. Elements of forced actions in structure of operations have increased, use of heavy weapons and military equipment, use of force by the peacekeeping contingents not only for self-defense, but also for more frequent demonstration of force, precautionary expansion, force separation of the parties, disarmament of illegal armed groups.

The eighth. There is a frequent gap between the military and political party of operations, delegation of political and diplomatic functions to the militaries. Tasks of a military stage of opeartion are usually carried out quicker and more successfully, than tasks of political conciliation and post-conflict restoration of peace, however the armed peacekeeping forces staying in a zone of the conflict is being prolonged for ensuring stabilization of a situation.

The ninth. An erosion in criteria of "impartiality" and "equidistance" of peacekeepers from the parties of the conflict, recognition of possible attraction of the countries having own interests in the conflict region to the operations. The practice of 1960-80ss on an exclusion of the military contingents of the countries - permanent members of the UN Security Council from the structure of participants in operations, transition to active participation of "great powers" in peacekeeping operations has been refused.

The tenth. Complication and more frequent audit of operation mandates. Precautionary intervention in emerging conflicts is more earlier audit. Transition from prevalence of "classical" observation operations to more and more resolute force implementation on conflicting parties.

The eleventh. Peacemaking acts as the catalyst of state cooperation development in military area.

The twelfth. Peacemaking reflecting new approaches to application of armed forces starts making impact on transformation of military doctrines provisions for the purpose of refining the tasks of national armed forces, including their participation in carrying out peacekeeping operations.

2. International law and military problems of conducting peacekeeping operations

The main purpose of the UN formulated in its Charter is maintenance of international peace and security. Achievement of this purpose is the main objective of the UN and all its bodies. Peacekeeping operations are only one of the means for achieving the main goal of the UN. At the same time a feature of this mean is that it is not provided by the Charter or any other legally binding act of the UN. The first international legal problem consists in it.

Practice of carrying out peacekeeping operations shows that the experience which had been summed up during their carrying out has not been realized in regulations of an international document.

The report of the former UN SecretaryGeneral Boutros Ghali (1992-1996) “An Agenda for Peace” offered rather difficult gradation of the UN operations including preventive diplomacy, peacemaking,

peacekeeping, post conflictual peace-building, disarmament, sanctions and enforcement measures [3]. Borders between these terms are blurred, and some of the modern operations have so multicomponent character that may include elements of several or even all listed above types of operations. The relevance of a conceptual framework sharply increased after the organizations, for example, NATO and the CIS began to perform own regional operations. Thus, so far there is no clear understanding and interpretation of peacekeeping operations in international law.

The resolutions of the UN Security Council are the legal basis for each operation authorizing its carrying out and determining its mandate. Such resolutions, certainly, bear some legal basis, but they are the administrative acts having a certain target value and time limits on action. It is impossible to deny value of other documents of the UN, in particular, materials of the Security council where experience of carrying out peacekeeping operations is generalized, ideas on their enhancement and development are pushed. However, in legal sense such documents at best can be regarded as the materials which are helping to understand an essence of peacekeeping operations, but not determining their legal status, the rights and obligations of the parties involved in their implementation one way or another.

The second problem is that multicomponent and multipurpose nature of modern peacekeeping operations makes their tough fixing in this or that chapter or article of the UN Charter unreal and inexpedient. Modern peacekeeping operations can consist of military, police and civil components, can carry out functions on peacekeeping, enforcement to the peace or restoration of peace.

For this reason many specialists put a question of development of the UN Convention concretizing the Charter provisions in relation to peacekeeping operations. It is about development of the framework document establishing, first of all, a conceptual framework, as well as the general and operational principles of carrying out peacekeeping operations, bases of the status of their participants.

The third problem is that many countries have their legislative norms on participation in peacekeeping operations which not always correspond to the international ones. In this regard inevitable difficulties accomplishing the Security Council resolutions appear due to distinction of the international and national legal bases.

In a situation when the mandate on force measures for peacekeeping does not require agreement of the government or the governments involved in the conflict, Chapter VII of the UN Charter speaks about the mixed operations. The mixed operations are called sometimes the third generation of peacekeeping operations, this term was applied in Bosnia in due time. Often vague legal boundaries between peacekeeping operations and operations with force implementation undermine the trust to the UN and threaten life of its personnel. Therefore, the Security Council in each separate case has the right to make the decision on correctness of operations on peace enforcement, allocating the appropriate human and material resources for their implementation.

The fourth problem as was showed by experiment of carrying out peacekeeping operation in Somalia, consists in not always effective coordination of efforts of peacekeeping forces. Various states, as a rule, were more often aiming to ensure safety of the national contingents, than were thinking of collateral actions coordination. But it is dangerous as well to provide a freedom of action to national commands because it can lead to sharp increase in losses of the UN military contingent.

The fifth problem has purely military character. It is connected with compatibility of systems of managing the national contingents within multinational forces, distinctions in the level and requirements to preparation of staff, armament and military equipment, operational and tactical standard rates.

The sixth problem is in lack of common system of the international monitoring over a military-political situation in crisis points that results in inability to prevent unleashing of the local conflicts timely, makes preventive measures of the states of the world community ineffective.

The seventh problem is the miscalculations in political settlement allowed by participants of peacekeeping process which lead to a gap between accomplishment of military part of peace agreements and implementation of political, social, economic and administrative processes. It causes constant prolongation of the mandate of peacekeeping forces, involves unjustified human losses and considerably increases expenses of financial resources on carrying out operations.

3. Experience and possible forms of Kazakhstan’s participation in peacekeeping operations

Nature, conditions and forms of participation of Kazakhstan in peacekeeping operations are determined by international legal regulations, the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan, the international liabilities, agreements and agreements which our country is participant of.

The law "About Peacekeeping Activities of the Republic of Kazakhstan" of June 15, 2015 determines the tasks of our country’s peacekeeping activities:

1. prevention of disagreements between the parties, non-admission of development of the conflicts into armed conflicts, restriction on the scale of a conflict;
2. assistance to the termination of violent acts by diplomatic means and methods;
3. participation of military personnel in collateral international forced actions according to the UN Charter;
4. protection of the territory and (or) the population in a zone (area) of carrying out peacekeeping operations from armed attack;
5. ensuring compliance with conditions of ceasefire;
6. separation of conflicting parties, disarmament and disbandment of divisions;
7. assistance to the problem resolution of the refugees and persons who are temporarily moved within the country;
8. humanitarian assistance;
9. recovery of infrastructure in a zone (area) of carrying out peacekeeping operations;
10. providing law and order, safety of the population and observance of human rights;
11. other tasks provided by the mandate [4].

The increased role of the international peacemaking as means of armed conflicts resolution was confirmed by military doctrines of the Republic of Kazakhstan adopted in 2000, 2007 and 2011 where peacekeeping operations are considered as one of forms of the Armed Forces, other troops and military forming application. Thus, the military doctrine puts participation of military forming in peacekeeping operations in one row with their appliance for ensuring military security of the state.

The Armed Forces, other troops and military forming of Kazakhstan participation in a peacekeeping activity, in addition to the law stated above and the military doctrine, is regulated by the international treaties ratified by our country, a number of signed documents, including the Concept of forming and functioning of the mechanism of peacekeeping organization activity of the Agreement on collective security (2004), the Agreement on peacekeeping activities of the CSTO; Regulations on Collective peacekeeping forces of the CSTO (Official site of the CSTO of URL: http://www.dkb.gov.ru/d/bzzi.htm [access: 26.07.2016]).

Implementation of the tasks in operations on maintenance and restoration of the peace is assigned to the divisions of the Armed Forces, other troops and military forming of the Republic of Kazakhstan which are specially prepared according to international standards.

Their participation in peacekeeping operations is performed based on the decision of Parliament of the Republic of Kazakhstan made according to the Constitution, the legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan and the ratified international treaties.

Staffing of the allocated contingent is carried out on a voluntary basis.

The allocated contingent during peacekeeping operations can carry out the following tasks:

1. blocking of the area of the conflict for the purpose of ensuring accomplishment of the sanctions accepted by the international community;
2. separation of armed groups of conflicting parties and their disarmament;
3. providing ceasefire and peace-making regime, prevention of renewal of military operations;
4. mine clearing of the district, liquidation of fortification constructions and consequences of weapons of mass destruction usage;
5. control of transportations, suppression of illegal import and export of military equipment, weapon, ammunition and explosives;
6. control over the district and actions of the population in a separation zone, counteraction to conflicts;
7. assistance to regional authorities (law enforcement agencies) in law enforcement, safety of the persons which came back to places of former accommodation;
8. protection and maintenance of the humanitarian assistance freight;
9. providing safety of formal meetings for negotiations on settlement of the conflict and safety of the personnel of peacekeeping missions.

The first peacekeeping mission of the Kazakhstan military contingent is participation in stabilization of a situation in the Republic of Tajikistan as a part of Collective peacekeeping forces of the CIS from 1993 to 2001. Operation in Tajikistan has a status of full-fledged regional peacekeeping operation of the CIS. It was performed based on the collective decision of heads of states of the CIS (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan), had the mandate of the CIS [5]. Common military leadership was performed at this operation through the international body - Headquarters on coordination of military cooperation of the State Parties of the CIS. Thus, observer mission of the UN was in parallel developed in Tajikistan.

According to the decision of the heads of states of the CIS, the Kazakhstan's separate composite rifle battalion took part in joint protection of the Tajik-Afghan border. In its structure there were two companies of frontier guards, two motorized infantry companies from Armed Forces and one company from Internal troops of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of the Republic of Kazakhstan. It is known that actions of Collective peacekeeping forces of the CIS promoted the end of the conflict in Tajikistan and brought the peace to this country.

In the second half of 1990ss the joint peacekeeping battalion - "Tsentrazbat" was created by the decision of the heads of three states: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Kyrgyzstan. The divisions which are a part of this battalion were deployed in the territory of the countries. But life showed that this battalion could function successfully only during peacekeeping trainings. The first such training "Tsentrazbat-97" was conducted in September, 1997 in the territory of Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan, the last one – in 2000. Because of insufficient study of the legislative framework regulating "Tsentrazbat" functioning and its comprehensive providing, further this joint peacekeeping division was defunct.

In pursuance of the directions of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan N. A. Nazarbayev about ensuring readiness of the Armed Forces for actions in peacekeeping operations and according to his order of January 31, 2000 "About creation of the Kazakhstan peacekeeping battalion" the special peacekeeping division "Kazbat" which was a part of reserve forces of the UN was created.

Now there is already a separate brigade – "Kazbrig" as a part of airmobile troops for accomplishment of peacekeeping tasks.

Since 2003 international tactical and special peacekeeping training "Steppe Eagle" have began to be staged annually at first based on "Kazbat", and then on "Kazbrig". Originally they were carried out as the Kazakhstan-British joint training. The USA military personnel have participated since 2005, therefore the trainings have gained a tripartite format. Since 2012, the trainings are staged within the "Partnership for Peace" program with participation of the military personnel of the USA, Great Britain, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Germany, Lithuania, France, Italy and other states. This purpose is included in the individual action plan of partnership of Kazakhstan with NATO. In 2015 representatives of headquarters of NATO, soldiers and officers of the USA participated in these trainings, along with Great Britain, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, and also for the first time - Afghanistan, Nepal and Turkey.

Peacekeeping tasks as a part of multinational stabilization forces in Iraq were carried out by the Kazakhstan engineer group from 2003 to 2008. This group was a part of a multinational division "Center South" under the Polish management, and since fall of 2007 he was subordinated to the American command of a multinational division "Center".

Within 5 years there were 9 rotations in the group in which 290 servicemen of the Kazakhstan army participated as a part of coalition forces. The main objectives of the contingent were search and destruction of unexploded ammunition, the equipment of points of field water supply, water purification and delivery of health care.

The Kazakhstan peacekeepers in Iraq destroyed more than 4 million explosive subjects. Since 2005, within experience exchange, instructors of armed forces of Kazakhstan have trained 572 cadets of military academy of Iraq on disposal. The Kazakhstan medical officers constantly were attracted for work in medical group of the American Delta base where they provided medical care to more than 5000 people - to representatives of the coalition and local population, generally to the victim of terrorist attacks (In Kazakhstan the public Union of veterans of Iraq is created.URL: http://online.zakon.kz/Document/? doc_ id=31078450 12 [access: 27.07.2016]).

Accomplishment of peacekeeping tasks by the Kazakhstan military contingent in Iraq was highly appreciated by the world community, a management of the UN, and also heads of a number of the states including Iraq substantially promoted strengthening of authority of our country on the international scene. Also valuable experience of participation of the Kazakhstan military personnel in accomplishment of tasks was got by the multinational coalition.

It serves as confirmation of urgent active participation of the Kazakhstan contingent in peacekeeping operations under the auspices of the UN and other international organizations which are carried out based on the issued legal mandate.

In addition to strengthening of the international authority of the country, vigorous peacekeeping activity is of great importance for promotion of military-political positions and interests of Kazakhstan in the international affairs, and also ensuring its national security.

Officers of the Armed Forces of Kazakhstan currently serve only in two peacekeeping United Nations missions in Western Sahara (MINURSO) and Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI). Though there is a significant amount of the military personnel in the Kazakhstan army who had special training and capable at the high level to carry out tasks as military observers in the United Nations missions.

From Tsentrazbat's experience of the 1990s, and also missions in Iraq some valuable lessons were learned for the organization of special peacekeeping training by the Kazakhstan military personnel. In particular, it was revealed, what practical difficulties arise at the peacekeeping contingent in operational compatibility with the international military forming. Taking it into account, the infrastructure necessary for preparation of the national contingent and also its language preparation was considerably enhanced.

Techniques and standards of NATO are widely used during preparation of the Kazakhstan peacekeeping divisions for the purpose of ensuring operational compatibility with multinational peacekeeping forces.

Within implementation of the cooperation plan between Kazakhstan and NATO in July, 2008 based on Military institute of Land forces the "Partnership for Peace" training center ("Kazcent") was created. A main objective of the center is training of the military personnel of Kazakhstan, the countries of NATO and partners for participation in peacekeeping operations. In December, 2010 "Kazcent" is acknowledged by NATO as the educational center within the "Partnership for Peace" program.

According to the practice which has developed in recent years, during peacekeeping operations participation of the Kazakhstan military contingents in forced actions for settlement of the conflicts is not excluded. However, participation in operations on the peace enforcement is an extreme lever on a crisis situation therefore the direction of the Kazakhstan peacekeeping contingent for accomplishment of tasks in such operations shall be performed only in the presence of the respective mandate of the UN Security Council, in strict accordance with the UN Charter and the current legislation of the Republic of Kazakhstan by which the corresponding procedure of a parliamentary approbation of such decision is provided.

The tasks carried out by the military contingents of the Armed Forces, other troops and military forming of the Republic of Kazakhstan allocated for participation in peacekeeping operations under single command, shall be implemented by the following principles:

• recognition of the UN domination in maintenance of international peace and safety;
• observance of the UN Charter, international

legislation, laws of the host state;

• agreement of all parties participating in settlement;
• impartiality;
• the common leadership and control by the UN Security Council;
• respect of human rights, customs and traditions of local population;
• use of force, as a rule, for the purpose of self-defense and for a suppression of the forced attempts to prevent accomplishment of the mandate of peacekeeping forces (the minimum sufficiency, selectivity, harmony, prevention of collateral damage).

It is obvious that fundamental criteria, by which it is necessary to be guided in case of the direction by Kazakhstan of the peacekeeping contingents in "hot spots", shall be:

firstly, foreign policy feasibility of participation of the national contingent in peacekeeping operations;

secondly, compliance to national interests as in general on the international scene, so within this region;

thirdly, expansion of peacekeeping forces only after preliminary signing of the relevant agreement by the international body and conflicting parties or obtaining from the latter accurate guarantees that they agree with peacekeeping forces in a zone of the conflict of and do not intend to counteract them;

fourthly, availability of resources adequate to the operation’s mandate and readiness of the UN Security Council or other international organization to provide the corresponding financing;

fifthly, the minimum acceptable risk for the Kazakhstan peacekeeping contingent in peacekeeping operation. Expansion of this contingent shall happen, as a rule, after stabilization of a situation and in the presence of a political will to the conflict resolution by political methods at the parties.

The opinion stated above on possible forms of Kazakhstan’s participation in peacekeeping operations relies, first of all, on experience and practice of the United Nations peacekeeping operation. At the same time they consider the experience of carrying out operations by collective peacekeeping forces, as well as those changes which peacemaking has undergone for the last 20 years designating transition to the operations including, in addition to the "traditional" tasks, a package of measures directed on the solution of the problems which were generated by the conflict: prevention of humanitarian disasters, suppression of cases of mass human rights violations, assistance to implementation of democratic transformations.

Conclusion

The first conclusion which can be made as a result of the conducted research is that settlement of the modern conflicts, peace establishment and peacekeeping need the wide arsenal of flexible structures and mechanisms which, first of all, shall be based on economic, social, political and diplomatic efforts. The peace cannot be established completely if not to eliminate the cause of conflict. However, the increased danger of an emergence of the crisis situations and armed conflicts has faced international community to a difficult problem of a choice whether to agree with violence or to interfere to prevent it.

Therefore modern peacemaking represents a complex and many-sided problem in which political and military actions are closely interconnected. The choice of optimum option of actions is a difficult and responsible task.

In difficult dialectics of peaceful and military means of peacekeeping activities some positions have special value.

Firstly, the interrelation between preventive diplomacy and use of military force is extremely difficult and has no exact determination. In practice all types of the UN activities on peacekeeping (preventive diplomacy, peacemaking, peacekeeping, enforcement to peace, peace-building) inevitably intertwine with each other. Some of them are performed in parallel with actions of other security organizations.

Secondly, there is a basic distinction between peacekeeping and forced actions. The question of reasonable and accurate criteria of the situation when in interests of peacemaking military efforts are justified and necessary is absolutely ambiguous. In that case when the military contingents during peacekeeping operations start killing people, they become participants of the conflict which they are supposed to control.

Thirdly, peacekeeping is used to give diplomats opportunity for work. Peacekeeping operations, in particular, expansion of multinational peacekeeping forces in intensity zones, are directed on preventing the beginning or renewal of military operations, and also to put local flashes of the possible conflict under control. They can be also considered as the most important component of comprehensive process in peaceful settlement.

Fourthly, military enforcement is only one and last resort by means of which it is possible to achieve only limited results and which cannot be considered a universal remedy. For peacemaking it is necessary to direct efforts first of all on liquidation of the origins of the conflicts: economic ailments, social injustice, political dictatorship. Nevertheless, in some cases use of force can appear the only way to put an end to genocide; to help creation of the conditions necessary for conflict settlement; to stabilize a situation for carrying out humanitarian operations.

Fifthly, in peacekeeping operations it is not about conducting classical military operations against regular forces of the opponent for the purpose of their destruction, and about suppression of a will of the opponent to actions, about his neutralization, about protection of the population, that is about peacekeeping actions.

The second conclusion which is formulated from the results, - in case of implementation of peacekeeping activities Kazakhstan needs to adhere to a principled stand about necessity of collective efforts consolidation according to decisions of the UN Security Council and the universally recognized norms of international law for ensuring the regional and international security.

In this regard Kazakhstan faces a task to increase a role of the UN Security Council, strengthen control over carrying out peacekeeping operations. Coordinated actions with the states sharing this position, and also providing representation of our country in the structures of United Nations secretariat, first of all, in Department on peacekeeping operations (DPKO) are necessary for achievement of this purpose.

The third conclusion: for further enhancement of peacekeeping process it is reasonable for Kazakhstan to advance the following initiatives:

1. strengthening of the United Nations secretariat structures dealing with problems of peacekeeping and military questions;
2. close interrelation of peacekeeping operations with tasks on assistance to political process and peaceful dispute resolution;
3. expansion of structure of the UN reserve forces provided by the State Parties for implementation of peacekeeping operations;
4. accurate definiteness of the mandate, duration and conditions for the termination of operation;
5. availability of adequate resources and financing;
6. inclusion of the questions relating to carrying out peacekeeping operations; enhancement of the standardized procedures for the purpose of interaction of forces of various states into the national programs of preparation of military and civil personnel;
7. the composition of the joint command structure of peacekeeping forces shall reflect adequately the number and a role of the national contingents participating in this peacekeeping operations;
8. possibility of control from a national and military management.

Fourth conclusion. In response to the UN Secretary General’s address who has called to assume specific liabilities on providing new system of readiness for the UN peacekeeping operations during the Summit on peacemaking within the anniversary - the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly of the world leaders, our country could considerably intensify the participation in peacekeeping activities.

Firstly, to allocate the national military contingent in structure of the created forces of fast reaction of the UN, and also skilled police officers and experts in the field of justice for participation in peacekeeping missions.

Secondly, to initiate a question of the Kazakhstan peacekeeping contingent participation in such operations as United Nations mission on stabilization in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), United Nations mission in the Republic of South Sudan (UNMISS), Multi-profile complex United Nations mission on stabilization in Mali (MINUSMA), Multiprofile complex mission of the United Nations on stabilization in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), and also in peacekeeping mission of UNIFIL (the UN interim forces in Lebanon).

It is obvious that, along with foreign policy feasibility of the Kazakhstan contingent participation in each of these peacekeeping operations, one of the major factors is also finance costs. In the operations stated above the expenses are compensated by the UN. Therefore our country needs to aim at participation in them.

The fifth conclusion. Conditions of the national contingent participation in peacekeeping operations and a task order shall be performed according to special arrangements between the international organization establishing peacekeeping operations, force headquarters and Kazakhstan’s party which shall exercise political control and military command of the Kazakhstan military contingent.

The sixth conclusion. In case of the Kazakhstan military forming participation in peacekeeping operations they shall be well prepared not for conducting classical military operations against regular forces of the opponent for the purpose of their destruction, and for suppression of a will of the party applying the armed violence to its neutralization, but for protection of civilians.

Military department of Kazakhstan to which the tasks on development of rules and plans of preparation for peacekeeping operations and the organization of their execution are assigned by the current legislation needs to consider it.

The seventh conclusion. A number of peacekeeping operations currently has only civil and sometimes a police component, as well as components of the humanitarian assistance and post-conflict reconstruction. Some operations actually are a complex of actions for retraining of police officers, employees of boundary protection and other security service, in some cases - on providing safe conditions of carrying out political elections, recovery of political institutes and economic infrastructure.

In this regard activation of peacekeeping activities in Kazakhstan shall not be limited to preparation of military personnel in Armed Forces, other troops and military forming. It is necessary to involve other state bodies of the Republic of Kazakhstan in these activities which at the high professional level are capable to resolve issues of rendering a humanitarian, medical and technical assistance, training of the corresponding specialists.

Our country as an active member of the UN for the objective reasons is interested in activation of the international peacekeeping activities as peacemaking promotes military-political stability in the world. Therefore, further development of peacekeeping capacity in our country is an important factor of a national security strengthening.

REFERENCES:

1. Mezhdunarodnoe publichnoe pravo. Sbornik dokumentov / By K.A.Bekyashev, D.K.Bekyagiyev. М.: Prospekt, 2009.
2. An Agenda for Peace A Report of Secretary General of the UN B.Boutros- Ghali at the Security Council, New York, the UN, 1992. The UN official website URL:http://www.un.org/ru/index.html (access: 25.07.2016).
3. Ibid.
4. The Law of the Republic of Kazakhstan of 15 June, 2015 № 320-V “About peacekeeping activity of the Republic of Kazakhstan”.
5. Sbornik dokumentov po mirotvorcheskoi deyatelnosti, prinyatykh v ramkakh Sodruzhestva Nezavisimykh gosudarstv.- Minsk, Ispolnitelnyi Komitet SNG. - V.1.- 2001.