In 2015, the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) will expire and a new global development agenda will be adopted with a deadline of 2030. One key innovation will be the inclusion of peace, security, rule of law and good governance targets in the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). However, this very innovation has already proven to be a subject for lengthy and vigorous debates among the member states of the United Nations, and the prospects for a unanimous consensus over SDG 16 remain bleak. This article aims to unveil the substance of this debate not yet covered in Russian political science. The first section identifies the specificity of achieving the MDGs in fragile states and the key phases of work on integrating peace, security and governance in the global development agenda within Open Working Group on Sustainable Development Goals. The second section summarizes the arguments of both proponents and opponents of SDG 16 and examines the key issues in monitoring and financing peacebuilding and statebuilding efforts after 2015. The conclusion assesses the justifiability of alarmism expressed by the emerging powers, including the Russian Federation, regarding SDG 16 and emphasizes that the prospects for progress in ensuring positive peace and human security, especially in fragile and conflict-affected states, will depend not only on the clarity of targets and indicators or on successfully mobilizing financial resources for these goals, but on the balance of power between developed and developing countries and on domestics politics within donor countries.