Vietnam's contributions to UN peacekeeping operations highly appreciated

Peacekeepers hold flags of Vietnam and the UN before leaving for the UN Mission in South Sudan (Photo: VNA)

Hanoi (VNA) – TheUnited Nations Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-PierreLacroix, on February 21 thanked Vietnam for its strong support for as well as personnelcontributions to UN peacekeeping operations.

He noted the Vietnam has sentpersonnel to the UN peacekeeping forces since 2014 and continually made activecontributions in this regard. It deployed a Level-2 field hospital to the UN Missionin South Sudan (UNMISS) for the first time in October 2018. So far, it has sent75 officers, including 16 females, to the peacekeeping force, ranking 62nd among the UN member states.

Vietnamese peacekeepers areperforming duties at the UN missions in South Sudan and the Central AfricanRepublic. The country has also pledged to soon deploy personnel to the UN InterimSecurity Force for Abyei, a disputed area between Sudan and South Sudan.

UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix (Photo: AP)

Lacroix held that Vietnam’sLevel-2 field hospital in South Sudan has played an important role in thecommon success of UNMISS. It has not only helped ensure health and medical conditionsfor UN peacekeepers, especially amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but also organised workshops to improve the awareness of major issues such as COVID-19, HIV/AIDS,and gender-based violence.

He also spoke highly of theVietnamese officers’ professionalism, dedication, efforts, and sacrifice whileperforming duties in difficult environments, expressing his sympathies on the deathof Lt. Col. Do Anh, who had died earlier this year while working for the UNmission in the Central African Republic./.

VNA