By Ali Asghar Mubarak
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will host a preparatory meeting of the forthcoming United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping Ministerial in Is-lamabad on August 30-31.
The meeting will be held under the theme of “Safety and Security of UN Peacekeepers.”
Japan is a co-host of the meeting being held at the Centre for In-ternational Peace and Stability (CIPS), Pakistan’s premier training institute offering courses, workshops and seminars to UN peace-keepers from all over the world, Foreign Office Spokesperson said on Monday.
The foreign minister and the defence minister will deliver keynote addresses at the preparatory meeting.
Member States represented in the UN Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations – comprising 156 countries – will partic-ipate along with local and international experts, besides senior of-ficials from the UN Secretariat including the Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, the Under-Secretary-General for Operational Support, and the UN Police advisor will also attend it.
Panel discussions will be held during the two-day meeting on var-ious sub-themes to deliberate on capacity-building needs; safety and security of UN peacekeepers from the perspective of interna-tional law; enhancing medical capacity of UN peacekeeping mis-sions; and leveraging technology and strategic communication. The meeting will also feature an expert talk on the threats posed by improvised explosive devices (IEDs) and a briefing on the system of pledging.
The UN Peacekeeping Ministerial is the seminal high-level event for UN peacekeeping, held biennially with the participation of for-eign and defence ministers.
The 2023 ministerial will be held in Ghana in December, preceded by a series of four preparatory meetings, including one being hosted by Pakistan, with a focus on specific areas to facilitate con-crete outcomes for improving UN peacekeeping operations.
Pakistan is an active player in the field of UN peacekeeping, both at the policy and operational levels. Pakistan is among the largest troop contributors and, since 1960, has contributed over 230,000 men and women peacekeepers to 46 UN peacekeeping missions in almost all continents of the world, the spokesperson said.
“172 Pakistani peacekeepers made the ultimate sacrifice by sacri-ficing their lives in the line of duty. Pakistan’s hosting of the pre-paratory meeting signifies its continued commitment to UN Peace-keeping aimed at maintaining security and stability in various con-flict zones,” it was further added.
