平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)

へいわいじかつどう
noun
peacekeeping operations; peacekeeping (PKO)
1. peacekeeping operations; peacekeeping (PKO)
International activities — usually organized by the United Nations — in which troops, police, and civilian personnel are dispatched to former conflict zones to monitor ceasefires, protect civilians, and support the restoration of stability. In Japanese political discussion, the term is strongly associated with the UN PKO framework and Japan's own Self-Defense Forces participation.
国連(こくれん)の平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)。
The United Nations' peacekeeping operations.
日本(にほん)は長年(ながねん)にわたって平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)に参加(さんか)してきた。
Japan has participated in peacekeeping operations for many years.
自衛隊(じえいたい)は国連(こくれん)の平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)の一環(いっかん)として南(みなみ)スーダンに派遣(はけん)されたことがある。
The Self-Defense Forces have been dispatched to South Sudan as part of the United Nations' peacekeeping operations.

Composed of 平和(へいわ) (peace), 維持(いじ) (maintenance, upholding), and 活動(かつどう) (activity, operations). A direct calque of the English phrase "peacekeeping operations." It is the standard Japanese term for UN-led missions that send personnel to former conflict zones to monitor ceasefires and help stabilize the situation, and is often abbreviated in news reports as PKO.

USAGE:

  • Written out in full in formal contexts (government documents, news reporting on missions); abbreviated as PKO in headlines and speech.
  • Usually associated with the UN: 国連(こくれん)平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう) (United Nations peacekeeping operations).
  • In Japan this term is tightly linked to the 1992 PKO law (国際平和協力法(こくさいへいわきょうりょくほう)), which first allowed the Self-Defense Forces to be dispatched overseas.

POLITICAL NOTE:
Japan's constitutional pacifism makes any overseas deployment of the Self-Defense Forces politically sensitive. 平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう) has therefore been one of the main channels through which Japan contributes militarily abroad — under strict conditions, including the "Five Principles for Participation" (e.g., a ceasefire must already be in place, and consent of the host country is required).

COMMON COLLOCATIONS:

  • 国連(こくれん)平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう): United Nations peacekeeping operations
  • 平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)に参加(さんか)する: to participate in peacekeeping operations
  • 平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)部隊(ぶたい): a peacekeeping unit
  • 平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)の一環(いっかん)として: as part of peacekeeping operations
  • 平和維持活動(へいわいじかつどう)を展開(てんかい)する: to deploy peacekeeping operations

SIMILAR WORDS:

  • PKO (ピーケーオー(ぴーけーおー)): the common abbreviation used in news and speech
  • 平和維持軍(へいわいじぐん): peacekeeping force — the armed unit carrying out the operations
  • 国際協力(こくさいきょうりょく): international cooperation — a broader umbrella term
  • 人道支援(じんどうしえん): humanitarian aid — distinct from peacekeeping, focused on relief rather than ceasefire monitoring
  • 自衛隊(じえいたい)派遣(はけん): deployment of the Self-Defense Forces — the specific Japanese action often carried out under the peacekeeping framework
general
Added 2026.4.12 0:13
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