ISLAMABAD: Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Hina Rabbani Khar said Pakistan was a proud partner in the UN peacekeeping missions and affirmed the country’s strong commitment and support to the peacekeeping and peace building architecture of the United Nations.
Addressing an event at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to celebrate the “75 Years of UN Peacekeeping and Pakistan’s Contributions”, she said Pakistan had a strong and longstanding association and commitment to the UN peacekeeping.
Since 1960, she added that over 200,000 military, police and civilian personnel, including women had served with honour in 46 UN missions spread over 28 countries in Asia, Europe, and Africa.
“Today, we continue to stand among the top troops contributing countries with over 4,300 uniformed men and women serving in nine UN peace operations,” she said, adding Pakistani peacekeepers had served in war zones, performed post-conflict mediation duties and had undertaken rehabilitation work.
Through their professional excellence, integrity, impartiality and dedication, she stated that Pakistani peacekeepers had always distinguished themselves in every mission that they had participated in. She added “171 of our bravest peacekeepers have made the ultimate sacrifice in the line of duty for the cause of international peace and security.”
Last week, she added that the UN secretary general honoured the sacrifices of eight Pakistani peacekeepers who laid down their lives in 2022 alone on UN peacekeeping duty by awarding them the Dag Hammarskjold Medal.
Khar said Pakistan’s contribution on the ground has also been complemented by our sustained engagement in the areas of peacekeeping policy development as well as through training, capacity building and financing support for peacekeeping missions.
“We bring a unique perspective to peacekeeping both as a leading troops contributor as well as the host country as one of the oldest peacekeeping mission in United Nations Military Observers Group in India and Pakistan,” she said.
Without naming India, she said that as “we go through the world, some countries are allowed to deny the reality of conflicts,” adding “it is the institutions like UNMOGIP which remind us of the reality of that conflict and keep rogue countries from not becoming rogue.”
She also paid tribute to Pakistani women serving in the UN peacekeeping, saying they were not only representing the Pakistan Army but also Pakistan as the country. She said Pakistani women were playing significant roles as doctors, nurses, phycologists, stress counselors, vocational training officers, gender advisers and etc. She further stated the Pakistani military would also be training women troops as soldiers on the UN peacekeepers missions that would also be a major contribution.
She pointed out that team of women officers had the distinction of serving as the first all-female group from Pakistan on the UN peacekeeping mission deployed in Congo. “These deployments reflect Pakistan’s deep-rooted commitment to women’s critical role in the promotion of sustainable peace and security not only within Pakistan but all over the world.”
Khar affirmed Pakistan’s strong commitment and support to the UN peacekeeping and peace building architecture, adding Pakistan had firm faith in the UN’s ability to promote peace. “Pakistan also truly believes that the role that the UN plays in peace, security, development and norm setting is one that cannot be played by any other. We look forward to working with the international community to leverage UN peacekeeping as an effective tool for building a safer world,” she added.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023