This article reports on a research project that deals with how to ensure democratic accountability when military forces are used under the auspices of international institutions. The international community has developed a range of ways in which military forces can be used. States have also decided that in some cases military forces can be deployed to pacify intra‐state as well as inter‐state conflicts. States have developed a mixed system to deal with the issues of democratic accountability. Although military operations are conducted under the auspices of international institutions, states maintain control over decisions to deploy their troops. Democratic control and accountability have been maintained through national institutions and procedures. International authorization, preferably by the UN Security Council, is important to establish international and domestic legitimacy, but it is not the essential mechanism for ensuring democratic accountability.