Subject The article looks into the specifics of the South African peacekeeping policy. Objectives The research determines the doctrine and vision of the South African policy for peacekeeping, its views on the UN Responsibility to Protect commitment, peacekeeping operations in Africa and specifics of interacting with key peacekeeping parties – the UN, regional institutions (African Union, BRICS) and Russia. Methods The research is based on the historical analysis of the South African peacekeeping practices, institutional analysis for studying peacekeeping mechanisms, documentation analysis from perspectives of the international law. Results We traced the principal trends in the evolution of the South African peacekeeping activities and determined how Russia and South Africa could possibly establish the peacekeeping cooperation. Conclusions and Relevance South Africa will continue its peacekeeping efforts in the foreseeable future. In peacekeeping, South Africa is an advocate of Pan-Africanism and prefers regional peacekeeping organizations, rather than those supported by the UN. The latter fact makes the South African practices similar to the Russian ones across the post-Soviet space. The South African policy lacks resources for planning, implementation and conduct of its operations. Russia and South Africa could establish the peacekeeping cooperation ties through bilateral policy, collaboration under the auspices of the BRICS, Russia supporting the African Union policy, coordination of the countries’ efforts as part of the UN concept of the Responsibility to Protect commitment.