One of the primary purposes of the United Nations is the maintenance of international peace and security. Since its creation, the UN has often been called upon to prevent disputes from escalating into war, to persuade opposing parties to use the conference table rather than force of arms, or to help restore peace when armed conflict does break out. Over the decades, the UN has helped to end numerous conflicts, often through actions of the Security Council the primary organ for dealing with issues of international peace and security.

The Security Council, the General Assembly and the Secretary-General all play major, complementary roles in fostering peace and security. . United Nations activities cover the principal areas of conflict prevention, peacemaking, peacekeeping, enforcement and peace-building.

Peace-building
The experience of recent years has also led the United Nations to focus as never before on peace-building efforts to reduce a country's risk of lapsing or relapsing into conflict by strengthening national capacities for conflict management, and to lay the foundations for sustainable peace and development. Experience has shown that the creation of lasting peace can only be achieved by pulling together all resources to help countries foster economic development, social justice, respect for human rights and good governance.