National UN Peacekeepers

Ciudad Juarez, one of the most dangerous places in the world, has a murder rate of 7 people per day. It is embroiled in a cataclysmic drug war which, although violent, is an issue of national security for the Mexican Government. While the Government has sent troops to the area to quell violence, local businesses are not content with the progress made. They are requesting that the United Nations send in peacekeepers to facilitate an end to the conflict.

Chapter VII of the UN Charter clearly states that all matters involving peacekeeping forces must be international in nature. In fact, the UN was created upon the basis of State sovereignty being held in highest regard. Although the nature and definition of peacekeeping has changed over the past decades, the preeminence of sovereignty has not. Has the UN gone too far in allowing peacekeeping forces to deal with national matters, thereby stretching its already thin budget? Should it focus its attention to matters of an international concern? Is the UN trying to do too much, with too little?