UN officials keen to deploy more peacekeepers from Bangladesh, [ 2022 ]

United Nations officials have expressed interest in deploying more peacekeepers from Bangladesh in bilateral meetings with Chief of Army Staff General S M Shafiuddin Ahmed at UN Headquarters (UNHQs) in New York.

UN officials keen to deploy more peacekeepers from Bangladesh, [ 2022 ]

The Bangladesh army chief had meetings with senior officials of the UN on various issues of mutual interest, including peacekeeping operations during his visit to U’NHQ on April 25 and 26, according to a message received here today.

General Ahmed met with U’N U’nder-Secretary-General of Department of Security and Safety Gilles Michaud, Acting Military Adviser Major General Maureen O’Brien, Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) of Department of Political and Peace Building Affairs Mohammed Khaled Khiari, ASG of Department of Operational Support Christian Sau’nders and Police Adviser Luis Ribeiro Carrilho.

During the meetings, the Bangla-desh army chief proposed to replace the long-used weapons and equipment in the Bangla-deshi contingents of the peacekeeping mission with new weapons and equipment sourced from Bangla-desh, to which the concerned officials readily agreed.

As a result, the long-awaited issue of replacing weapons was resolved which would eventually play a significant role in enhancing Bangla-deshi peacekeepers’ capability, security, and morale, said a press release of the Bangla-desh Permanent Mission in U’N.

he army chief mentioned that Bangla-deshi peacekeepers are nominated through a rigorous selection process and sent to the mission with advanced pre-deployment training.

The U’N acting military adviser highly praised the Bangla-deshi peacekeepers’ professionalism, ethics, and discipline.

He said that Bangladesh is at the forefront of U’N peacekeeping operations for all these reasons.

He expressed interest in recruiting more peacekeepers from Bangla-desh in the future.

Khaled Khiari also lauded Bangla-desh’s leadership in the Peace building Commission and U’N Peacekeeping missions.

He also praised the government and the people of Bangla-desh for its graduation from the LDC category and for providing humanitarian shelter to the forcibly displaced Rohingyas.

During the talks, the acting military adviser and the ASG of the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs requested the Bangladesh army chief to deploy an aviation contingent to the U’N peacekeeping mission as soon as possible.

The army chief agreed in principle to the request.

Christian Sou’nders also praised the professionalism and logistical capabilities of Bangla-deshi peacekeepers.

He also expressed interest in recruiting more Bangla-deshi peacekeepers for different missions.

Luis Riberio Carrilho commended the Bangla-deshi police personnel engaged in peacekeeping operations and expressed interest in recruiting more Bangla-deshi police personnel.

Bangla-desh army chief highlighted Dhaka’s constitutional commitment to world peace and raised issues of Bangla-desh’s interest in the U’N peacekeeping operations, such as recruitment of more Bangla-deshi peacekeepers, including women peacekeepers.

He also discussed appointment of high-level military officials in various peacekeeping operations, deployment of armed personnel carriers from Bangla-desh, recruitment of Bangla-deshi peacekeepers to the political missions and guard u’nits, recruitment of skilled and experienced officers of Bangla-desh Army in the Security and Safety, and the Operational Support Department of U’NHQs and deployment of more Police Contingents and Individual Police Officers (IPOs).

The Chief of Army Staff visited the bench set up in the name of Bangabandhu and the tree -Honey Locust, at the U’N Headquarters premises on the occasion of the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.