This week the 193 member countries of the UN have reached an agreement in extremis to finance the 12 missions with 90,000 blue helmets that are deployed to stabilize conflicts around the world. All the alarm bells rang on Monday, when it seemed that the 5,460 million euros in the budget to keep them running would not be forthcoming: in fact, the commanders on the ground already had contingency plans prepared in case a hasty withdrawal was necessary. The fact is that the UN does not have an army for its "peacekeeping" operations, but depends on soldiers and the money that countries lend it. And, as in everything else, nothing moves without the agreement of the great powers with the right of veto in the Security Council.

This week the United Nations Assembly reached a last-minute agreement to maintain all the Blue Helmets peacekeeping operations deployed around the world. Until the last moment the agreement was in jeopardy because rich countries were reluctant to make the corresponding financial contributions, and in this sense Joe Biden's victory was key.