Hollywood heavyweight and United Nations Special Envoy, Angelina Jolie Pitt, has made a surprise appearance at a UN defence summit in London focused on improving peacekeeping operations.
The future and validity of United Nations peacekeeping operations has been under heavy scrutiny in recent years, following hundreds of allegations of sexual abuse by UN troops in nearly 70 countries.
Diplomats and defence ministers from 80 countries were attending the conference, when Ms Jolie Pitt used her address to call for change.
"The fact is that increasing the number of UN peacekeepers alone will not be enough to resolve the conflicts we are experiencing,” Ms Jolie Pitt said.
“It has be accompanied by a new way of conducting peacekeeping: one that has the rights and protection and involvement of women at its heart.
"This is fundamentally a question of military and institutional effectiveness. It is not just one of international law."
The complaints have largely arisen in vulnerable African countries such as the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
Aid agencies claim vulnerable women and girls are being assaulted, often as they search for water. World leaders believe it has undermined the work of the United Nations.
“It has be accompanied by a new way of conducting peacekeeping: one that has the rights and protection and involvement of women at its heart."
During the opening session, British defence secretary Michael Fallon told his counterparts the abuse must be quickly stamped out.
"Because poor performance, the absence of leadership, (and) the absence of moral courage will not only demoralise our people, but it will lose the hearts and minds of the people that we send them to protect,” he said.
“We have to be honest about this. There have been some shocking examples of poor performance that we would all deplore. I hope we can agree today that there must be a zero-tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse."
The United Nations does not have its own army and relies on member states to provide soldiers and police during operations. As a result, contributing countries are responsible for investigating and prosecuting alleged perpetrators within their contingents.
UN Under Secretary General for Field Support, Atul Khare, said the United Nations is working on more effective measures for counteracting that situation.
According to the UN, since January 2015 about 450 troops and police personnel from 68 countries have allegedly engaged in misconduct. (AAP) Source: AAP
"The great work, the ultimate sacrifices of our colleagues, are lost in one day by the misconduct of one,” Mr Khare said.
“Since January 2015, about 450 troops and police personnel from 68 countries have allegedly engaged in misconduct. Based on known allegations, another 150 uniformed personnel may have sexually exploited or abused, though they were tasked to protect.
“We are strengthening our investments in misconduct prevention and enforcement and remediation, and we ask for more support from you, on a bilateral basis, with each and every troop and police contributor. We simply cannot afford any lapses."
South Sudan, which currently has 12,000 UN troops on the ground, is set to receive a further 4,000 due to another escalation of violence.
Britain has announced it will be sending 400 peacekeepers to help protect the region and build a hospital unit. But Michael Fallon has acknowledged there was a selfish component to Britain's motivation.
"And let's be clear why we are doing this. If you don't help keep these fragile states together, you end up with instability, with violence, with terrorism, and then you end up with mass migration,” he said.
“And you get people on the move, and they go on the move to Europe and set off on that very dangerous journey to Europe. So you need to deal with these issues further back."
A plea for female peacekeepers
A communique delivered at the summit pledged to double the number of women who make up the UN peacekeepers and police, which currently stands at just three per cent.
But not all countries signed the agreement, causing the Academy Award winner to make an impassioned plea.
“These are vital commitments. In my view there is a dividing line between nations that are prepared to commit to this moment to understand all that is necessary and all that we are capable of achieving together and those who are not," MS Jole Pitt said.
“One of the core functions of peacekeeping if not the most important as we all know is civilian protection. Peacekeeping forces can only gain and keep the trust of the local populations if they are able to engage with women as well as men in that community.
“Women peacekeepers and police officers are essential to local consent and operation effectiveness. So I urge all countries here that have not endorsed the communique: please do so."
