Dhaka Stresses on Safety of UN Peacekeepers

Bangladesh Permanent Representative to the UN Ambassador Rabab Fatima has stressed on ensuring necessary medical facilities and safety requirements of UN peacekeepers in the context of evolving challenges due to the current COVID-19 pandemic.

She also laid emphasis on the importance of factoring in additional capacities, training facilities, and adequate equipment for the UN peacekeepers to cope with this crisis period of the pandemic.

The ambassador was delivering concluding remarks on Monday at a virtual side event on ''Training for the protection of civilians: Assessing the challenges and best practices of contributions to UN peacekeeping training'', according to a press release, issued by Bangladesh permanent mission in the UN, which was made available on Tuesday.

The event was jointly organized by the Permanent Missions of Bangladesh, Netherlands, Rwanda, and Uruguay in collaboration with PAX, an internationally acclaimed Dutch think-tank.

''For the protection of civilians, training to be effective on the ground, they must be fit for purpose and flexible enough to adjust with the evolving situations and local realities,'' said Fatima in her speech.

Defining Protection of Civilians as a shared responsibility in conflict-affected countries and fragile contexts, she put emphasis on the importance of further strengthening partnerships among the Security Council, Troops and Police Contributing Countries, and the Secretariat for narrowing down capacity and resource gaps.

In reiterating Bangladesh’s commitment to making protection of civilians an integral part of the pre-deployment training of the peacekeepers, she highlighted the growing partnership of the Bangladesh Institute of Peace Support Operation Training (BIPSOT) with the UN and other Troops/Police Contributing Countries (T/PCCs) through customized training, joint exercises, and technical support.

More than one hundred representatives from different member states, UN Secretariat, and think-tanks participated in the event.

Ambassadors and Permanent Representatives of the Netherlands and Uruguay to the UN Karel J.G. van Oosterom and Carlos Amorín respectively also spoke at the event, among others.