. In April 1998, against a background of disillusionment with the international community?s inability to act in defense of civilians as borne out by the genocide in Rwanda (1994) and the ongoing civil war in Sierra Leone (1991-2002), the then Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, introduced, in a far-ranging report on Africa,1 the “humanitarian imperative” of Protecting Civilians in Situations of Armed Conflict (PoC). 2. Other themes listed under the heading “humanitarian imperatives” were: addressing refugee security issues; mitigating the social and economic impact of refugees on host countries; and humanitarian coordination. From the outset, PoC discourse proceeded hand in hand with issues related to refugees, a category of civilians, especially those who are women and children, most affected by conflict.2 3. As an objective, like the notion of the humanitarian imperative, the concept of PoC is anchored in the Geneva Conventions and their Additional Protocols. In the United Nations discourse, PoC, in addition to being an objective, is as an overarching concept, although never clearly defined, which embraces a range of issues which are of particular significance for UNHCR, both in its capacity as the UN mandated protection organization for refugees, and as the Lead of the Global Protection Cluster. 4. However, the discourse on PoC is seen by some as having neglected topics pertaining to refugees and asylum: “[W]hile the protection of civilians – and IDPs in particular – is now a regular item before the Security Council, and in the policy statements of aid agencies and donors, refugee protection and asylum policy has been strikingly absent from these deliberations. 5. As international awareness and recognition of the protection needs of IDPs and other civilians has increased, concern with refugee protection appears to have waned, despite the fact that refugee protection is supported by a far more elaborate and developed regime of international laws and institutions. Increasingly, questions related to the treatment of refugees, including access to asylum, non-refoulement and burden-sharing, are considered in policy fora concerned with matters of immigration control rather than civilian protection.”3 6. This interesting observation is true in part about the tendency for issues related to refugees to be increasingly relegated to discussions about the asylum/migration nexus and migration control; however, it is too sweeping a statement in regard to the place of refugees in the discourse about protection of civilians in armed conflict, especially in the Security Council. There is the regular inclusion of the subject of refugees in the Reports of the Secretary-General to the Security Council on this theme.4 7. The statement does prompt, however, the question as to the degree of UNHCR?s involvement and interest in the theme of PoC, both as the UN refugee agency and in its role as Lead of the Global Protection Cluster. This paper looks at this issue and makes some proposals as to how UNHCR might position itself in relation to PoC, so as to benefit more from the current focus on this issue, especially in the context of UN peacekeeping.