Vietnamese peacekeepers overseas joined in an online exchange programme held from Hà Nội ahead of the Lunar New Year festival. — VNA/VNS Photo

HÀ NỘI — Blue-beret Vietnamese officers and soldiers who are on duties in UN peacekeeping missions in South Sudan, Abyei on the border of South Sudan and Sudan, the Central African Republic, and at the UN Headquarters in New York, joined warm moments with their comrades and relatives at home during an online exchange programme on January 15, celebrating the Lunar New Year (Tết) Festival.

Jointly organised by the Việt Nam Department of Peacekeeping Operations (VDPO) under the Ministry of National Defence, and the Military Broadcasting and Television Centre under the General Department of Politics of the Việt Nam People's Army (VPA), the programme aimed to promote Việt Nam's significant achievements in peacekeeping operations in 2024.  

It also served to boost the morale of the peacekeepers who are celebrating Tết far from home, while highlighting Việt Nam's growing proactiveness in preparing peacekeeping forces, ready to deploy for missions, both from the Ministry of National Defence and the Ministry of Public Security.

Senior Lieutenant General Phùng Sĩ Tấn, deputy chief of the VPA's General Staff, deputy head of the Intersectoral Working Group, and deputy head of the Ministry of National Defence’s Steering Committee on Participation in UN Peacekeeping Operations, extended New Year wishes to the officers and soldiers, applauding them for tireless efforts in performing their duties.

The blue-beret force has played a significant role in spreading the image of the Uncle Hồ's soldiers and the People's Public Security of Việt Nam to international friends, and showcased the humane spirit of the Vietnamese people, he stressed.   

Tấn appreciated contributions and support from international partners in recent times for Việt Nam's peacekeeping force, expressing his hope that international organidations and friends, and countries around the world will create the best conditions for Vietnamese peacekeepers to accomplish their mission. — VNS