UN peacekeeping operations play an important role in preserving international peace and security, and helping create stable environment for development. — Photo AFP

NEW YORK — UN peacekeeping operations play an important role in preserving international peace and security, and helping create stable environment for development, head of the Việt Nam mission to the United Nations said last week at a debate on peacekeeping operations as part of the 71st session of the UN Special Political and Decolonisation Committee.

Ambassador Nguyễn Phương Nga stressed that given complicated global developments, the UN should uphold basic principles including respecting independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity; not interfering in internal affairs of member states; ensuring impartiality; and not using force except for self-defence and safeguarding mission operations.

The ambassador also praised the intermediary and conflict prevention role of the UN, as well as its co-operation with regional and sub-regional organisations to mobilise resources for peacekeeping work.

At the same time, she called on the UN Security Council to strengthen co-ordination and consultations with the UN Secretariat and the Peacebuilding Commission, as well as with relevant countries, in the planning and decision-making of peacekeeping missions.

Ambassador Nga took the occasion to reiterate Việt Nam’s commitment to an active and responsible contribution to the maintenance of world peace and international security.

She noted that Việt Nam began to send its liaison officers to participate in UN peacekeeping operations in 2014 and is to dispatch more medical and sapper officers in the future.

At the debate, Deputy UN Under-Secretary for Peacekeeping Operations Herve Ladsous noted that the UN is currently running 17 peacekeeping missions with 142,000 members from 123 countries.

He underscored that in order to optimise these operations, member countries should enhance their contributions to the force and commit to improve the capacity, equipment and adaptation ability of the missions.

Participants agreed on the need to increase the effectiveness of the operations by ensuring resources and building capacity for the missions, along with modernising technology and equipment and designing long-term plans for peacekeeping and sustainable development.— VNS