Alexander, John S., Jr The United Nations Military Staff Committee: A Command and Control Alternative for Conducting Peace Operations. Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth KS Jun 1995.
This study examines the deficiencies within the current UN organization for military command and control and their adverse effects on guidance and planning support for commanders conducting peace operations. The thesis proposes structural changes designed to make the system more effective. Specifically, empowering the Military Staff Committee to realize its responsibilities outlined in the UN Charter; while relieving the Secretariat and the Secretary General from performing duties which they are neither designed for, nor capable of. The study begins with a description of the current UN system for conducting peace operations. It examines the history and Charter of the UN in terms of the international political realities at the end of World War II, contrasted against the political realities facing the world in a post-cold war era. Peace operations are commonly multinational efforts. This study considers the collective joint/combined experience of the Permanent Members of the Security Council and suggests that the United Nations could conduct peace operations more effectively if the structure was changed to be consistent with the UN Charter.