Post-conflict societies are at a crossroads: their recovery must start fast or they face a serious risk of re-emergence of conflict. Post-conflict peace-building, the setting up of institutions and especially the establishment of the rule of law prevent conflicts from re-emerging and possibly from being transformed into local terrorism; they also prevent states from collapsing and becoming a safe heaven for international terrorist groups. Attention devoted to the fight against terrorism should result in the allocation of more resources and an improved organizational framework for these activities. The needs of post-conflict societies are qualitatively different from those of stable societies, and the Bretton Woods institutions' criteria and conditions for obtaining resources do not seem suitable. Immediately after the conflict, economic rationality has to be balanced with the social preconditions of a sustainable peace. If peace-building operations continue to expand, the Security Council will have to share the burden with other UN bodies more suited to this particular task – perhaps with an adequately reformed Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), or the resurrected and radically transformed Trusteeship Council.