Deputy Minister of Defence Senior Lieutenant General Hoang Xuan Chien said during an interview with the Vietnam News Agency on the occasion of the 7th founding anniversary of the Vietnam Peacekeeping Centre (May 27), now the Vietnam Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

He described the establishment of the department in 2014 as a milestone for the development of the Vietnamese peacekeeping force, providing the conditions for Vietnamese “blue beret” officers to engage in the UN’s multilateral mechanisms.

The Vietnamese blue-berret officers off for mission in South Sudan (Photo: VOV)

It is also vivid illustration of high-ranking Vietnamese leaders’ commitment to the international community, Chien stressed, adding that the force has played an important role in boosting Vietnam’s multilateral diplomacy, particularly relations with the UN and many countries around the world.

Its establishment also affirms that defence cooperation is a crucial pillar in the Party’s foreign policy, making contributions to improving the role and position of the Vietnam People’s Army and Vietnam in general in the international arena while helping the country successfully perform its role as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council (UNSC) during the 2020-2021 tenure.

Since the department’s establishment, 55 officers have been sent to work at the UN’s headquarters and missions while 189 doctors and medical workers have been dispatched to work at level-2 field hospitals in the Central African Republic and South Sudan.

Included in the peacekeeping force were 34 servicewomen, accounting for more than 16% of the total force, compared with the 10% required by the UNSC under its Resolution No 1325 on women and peace and security.

Chien said that Vietnam has proactively participated in multilateral mechanisms of international organisations and partners, adding that it has signed nine memoranda of understanding (MoUs) in the field of peacekeeping with countries, one MoU with the UN, and one with the EU.

These are important documents since they shape political commitments in maintaining and promoting peacekeeping activities, he highlighted.

The 14th National Assembly adopted Resolution No 130/2020/QH14 on participating in UN peacekeeping operations, laying a solid legal foundation for the force to carry out activities in line with Party and State foreign policies.

Regarding upcoming activities, Chien noted that a team of army engineers stands ready to join the UN mission, and the UN will inspect the team’s preparations in June.

If the team is suitable for the mission, this will be a new milestone for the Vietnamese peacekeeping force, he said, emphasising that it will be able to join other forces in the UN such as the police./.

BTA