Since 1948, Denmark has contributed to the UN's first peacekeeping mission - the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO).

The mission was established with Security Council Resolution No. 50 to monitor the cessation of hostilities between the new state of Israel on the one hand and Palestinian Arabs supported by the Arab states on the other.

The Danish contribution to the mission in recent years has been around 10 officers. The Danish officers work both as observers and in the mission's staff.

There have been repeated wars in the region and the role of the observers has changed continuously, but the mission has remained in the area so that the observers have been able to counter that the hostilities should flare up again and develop into major conflicts.

The mission's observers are working today to monitor compliance with the ceasefire and compliance with agreements reached. They also help prevent isolated incidents from developing into something bigger, and they assist other UN operations in the region. These are UNDOF (United Nations Disengagement Observer Force) working in the Golan Heights and UNIFIL (United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon) in Lebanon.

UNTSO is headquartered in Jerusalem, Israel, and has troops in Israel, Lebanon, Egypt, and Syria.