New York, November 6 — India has called for United Nations peacekeeping operations that are “better-resourced, better-protected” and “more representative”, highlighting its contribution of more than 300,000 troops across 50 missions and the sacrifice of 184 Indian peacekeepers who died serving under the UN flag, ANI reported on Friday.
Source: ANI via APNA MA TV
Addressing the annual debate on the comprehensive review of peacekeeping operations at the General Assembly's Fourth Committee, Colonel Tarunendra Pratap Singh, Military Advisor at India's Permanent Mission to the UN, paid homage to fallen peacekeepers and said India is the largest cumulative troop contributor to UN peacekeeping to date. The statement was shared by India's Permanent Mission to the UN on X.
Singh said peacekeepers today face asymmetric and technologically enabled threats, and that those who attack peacekeepers must be held accountable. He recalled India's leadership in securing UN Security Council Resolution 2589 in August 2021, during India's Council presidency, which focuses on accountability for crimes against peacekeepers.
India asked for institutionalised consultations with troop- and police-contributing countries before mandates are adopted or reviewed, and cautioned against expecting peacekeepers to deliver more with insufficient resources. Missions without a clear operational rationale, Singh said, drain resources and undermine the credibility of peacekeeping. He also urged faster integration of technology and renewable energy into missions, citing India's support for the UNITE AWARE initiative.
On women's participation, Singh noted that India has deployed women peacekeepers since 1960, including the first-ever all-female Formed Police Unit in Liberia in 2007, and that 160 women peacekeepers from India are currently deployed across missions. He said the UN's Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations, known as C-34, remained the appropriate forum for peacekeeping discussions, and that India aligned with the statement delivered on behalf of the Non-Aligned Movement by Morocco.
Source: NewKerala (ANI)
Concluding, Singh said enhancing peacekeeping is a priority for India's candidature for a non-permanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2028-29 term, elections for which are scheduled next year. “We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to UN peacekeeping and to a peacekeeping architecture that is better resourced, better protected, and more representative of the world it serves,” he said.