Pearson's Peacekeepers: Canada and the United Nations Emergency Force, 1956-67

In 1957, Lester Pearson won the Nobel Peace Prize for creating the United Nations Emergency Force during the Suez crisis. The award established Canada's reputation as a peacekeeping nation, but it also launched a national love affair with peacekeeping that has obscured more complex historical realities. Pearson's Peacekeepers explores the reality behind the rhetoric by offering a comprehensive account of the UN's first major peacekeeping operation. The UNEF eased tensions and kept peace along the Egyptian-Israeli border for more than a decade, yet it faced tremendous challenges from its creation and its abrupt withdrawal paved the way for further hostilities between Israel and Egypt during the Six Day War. By providing a nuanced account of Canada's participation in the UNEF, this book not only challenges perceived notions of Canada's past, it will help students, policy-makers, and concerned citizens to more accurately evaluate international peacekeeping efforts in the present.