Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has called for upholding the dignity of the UN peacekeeping, saying that Bangladesh attaches high importance to its reform.
“We must all work with a positive mindset to uphold the dignity of UN peacekeeping,” she said while delivering her statement at a High-Level Event on Action for Peacekeeping (A4P) at the initiative of the UN secretary General Antonio Guterres.
The event was held at the Trusteeship Council Chamber in the UN Headquarters on Wednesday (BST) where Guterres also spoke.
As a leading contributor of troops and police, the premier said, Bangladesh attaches high importance to UN peacekeeping reform.
The premier said peacekeepers are now deployed in certain places where there is no peace to keep and they face growing, unconventional threats from non-state actors.
She said the UN missions are often working alongside other forces with different standards and these are making UN peacekeeping operations difficult and dangerous.
“Peacekeepers should, therefore, be given clear mandates and they should be adequately authorized and equipped to fulfill their mandates,” she said.
Stressing the need for improving the safety and security of the peacekeepers, the premier said their commitment and performance would set the benchmark for their deployment.
“Their safety and security must be improved. We hope that A4P will help make UN peacekeeping ‘fit for purpose’,” she said.
The Declaration of Shared Peacekeeping Commitments, she said, is an important outcome. Source: BSS