United Nations: In the face of increased threat to ‘Blue Helmets’, India has strongly underscored the need of well trained peacekeepers in UN missions, saying that their importance cannot be over-emphasised. India’s remarks came after UN Secretary General António Guterres on Friday stressed on the need to make peacekeeping missions “stronger and safer” during the 2019 United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial here.
Ministers of defence, foreign affairs and high-level officials from more than 130 member states and intergovernmental organisations gathered at the United Nations headquarters for the ministerial to discuss and generate the specialized capabilities necessary for contemporary peacekeeping, with a specific focus on performance, protection of civilians and women, peace, and security.
“India is a signatory to A4P (Action for Peacekeeping) declaration and is ready to play an active role in collectively achieving the shared commitments identified in the declaration. With increased threat to the Blue Helmets, the importance of trained boots on ground cannot be overemphasized,” additional secretary in the ministry of defence Mala Dutt said.
He said as a responsible troop contributing country, India will continue to deploy professional troops in the missions and work towards capacity building of UN missions. Addressing the Training And Capacity Building session in the UN General Assembly hall, Dutt said since the implementation of the UN Peacekeeping Capability Readiness System (UNPCRS), India has pledged and deployed units and enablers as required by UN. Presently, India has committed an Infantry Battalion as a Rapidly Deployable Battalion, one Engineer and Signal Company, Force Military Police Platoon and three Formed Police Units in UNPCRS.
Guterres, during his address, said that as conflicts become more complex and high-risk, the peacekeeping operations must keep pace. Noting that 27 UN peacekeepers were killed by violent acts in 2018, he said making these missions “stronger and safer is one of the key elements of my Action for Peacekeeping initiative, together with refocusing peacekeeping with more realistic expectations, and mobilizing greater support for political solutions.” The UN chief thanked the over 150 countries that have signed the Statement of Shared Commitments so far which, among other things, encompasses advancing political solutions and improving peacekeepers’ safety and security.
