International Police Peacekeeping and Peace Operations

Canada's police are building a more secure world.

Canadian police have been participating in international peacekeeping missions since 1989. Since then, more than 3,000 Canadian police have been part of more than 53 missions around the globe, supporting the Government of Canada's commitment to global peace and security.

By building the capacity of foreign police to maintain law and order, Canadian police, in cooperation with international partners, help create a safer and more stable global environment. This paves the way for long-term development and can prevent illicit activities from spilling across borders into other countries, including Canada.

Foreign Policy and International Assistance

International policing efforts are an essential element of Canada's goal to build a more secure world by working to stabilize fragile and conflict-affected states such as Haiti, Afghanistan and Sudan.

Deploying police into fragile and conflict-affected states is in line with commitments made by Canada and other G8 countries to strengthen the international availability of civilian experts to support the rule of law, security institutions and international peace operations.

Benefits to Domestic Policing

Twenty-six municipal and provincial police agencies from across Canada make up approximately 70% of all Canadian deployments, with the RCMP comprising the other 30%.

By participating in missions, police officers gain invaluable professional development experience such as leadership opportunities and greater cultural awareness. Once police officers have returned from mission to their home police service, their experiences can help strengthen police services relationships with diaspora communities. In certain cases, it can even bolster domestic police capacity to investigate transnational crimes.

The Canadian Police Arrangement (CPA)

The Canadian Police Arrangement (CPA) is the framework through which Canadian police are deployed to international police peacekeeping and peace operations (IPP) around the world.

The CPA is a partnership between Public Safety Canada, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT), the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).

The CPA assesses international requests for Canadian engagement and recommends IPP operations for Canadian police participation.

International Peace Operations Branch

The RCMP's International Peace Operations Branch (IPOB) manages the deployment of Canadian police, including planning and evaluating missions, selecting and training personnel from across the country and providing support throughout deployment.

For current mission information, deployment schedule, information of partner police organizations and peacekeeper diaries please visit the IPOB site.