UN peacekeeping chief lauds India’s contribution

Noting the importance of digital technologies, the UN peacekeeping chief appreciated India’s initiative to ensure the fast pace of the world body’s peacekeeping operations in this context. He also said that India is a “key partner” in the UN’s strategy of digitizing peacekeeping. He appreciated India’s participation and commitment in important initiatives such as ensuring accountability for crimes against the ‘Blue Helmets’. The soldiers of the United Nations peacekeeping force are called ‘Blue Helmets’. India ranks third in terms of personnel contribution to UN peacekeeping operations.

Its more than 6000 military and police personnel are deployed in Cyprus, Congo, Lebanon, Middle East and Western Sahara region. In an exclusive interview to PTI, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, said, “India plays a big role in multilateralism in the world, in the United Nations, and it also contributes significantly to peacekeeping operations. His contribution is not significant only in the context of forces and police. We are also helped in many ways in the steps we take to improve peacekeeping.

The UN peacekeeping chief noted the “vital role” played by India’s peacekeepers. He said that India’s “commitment to participate and cooperate” in peacekeeping operations is important. Underlining India’s role in supporting initiatives to accelerate peacekeeping operations in the context of digital technologies, he said, “We have made a strategy for the digital transformation of peacekeeping and India is a major partner in this context.” International UN Peacekeeper Day is celebrated on 29 May to mark the completion of 75 years of peacekeeping operations. This year the theme of the event was “Peace begins with me”.

Three Indian peacekeepers who lost their lives last year while serving under the United Nations are among 103 military, police and civilian peacekeepers who have been posthumously awarded the ‘Dag Hammarskjold Medal’. The three Indians include Border Security Force Head Constables Shishupal Singh and Sanwali Ram Vishnoi, who served with the Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and Shabar Taher Ali, who served with the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq. India, one of the largest contributors of troops to UN peacekeeping, also deployed a platoon of women peacekeepers to Abei earlier this year. This is India’s largest single women platoon deployment in a UN mission.

Lacroix said increasing the number and role of women in these operations is key to improving peacekeeping. He said that he recently visited the military base of “our Indian contingent in Abei”. “More women in peacekeeping means more effective peacekeeping,” said Lacroix. We look forward to playing an active role in advancing the United Nations’ agenda of women’s empowerment.

He urged countries contributing to peacekeeping forces and police, including India, not only to send more women to units, but also to deploy more women candidates for higher positions in the military, police and military areas. India had launched the ‘Group of Friends’ in December last year during its presidency as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, aimed at increasing accountability for crimes against peacekeepers. Lacroix described it as “very important”. Noting that progress has been made in bringing perpetrators of crimes against peacekeepers to justice, he said that since 2019, 72 persons have been convicted. Lacroix said the environment in which peacekeepers perform their duties is becoming increasingly dangerous.

Disclaimer:IndiaTheNews has not edited this news. This news has been published from PTI-language feed.

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