The size and scale of UN peacekeepers deployment are insufficient for the tasks entrusted: India
On Tuesday, India’s permanent representative Sayed Akbaruddin told the UN Security Council that the size and scale of UN peacekeepers deployment are insufficient for the tasks entrusted and ask the forces to do more without providing sufficient resources and support is setting us all up for a tragedy.
Akbaruddin said during a debate on Strengthening Peacekeeping Operations in Africa, “When we task the troops deployed to enforce protection of civilians, without even providing enabling air assets for rapid reinforcement operations, it is obvious that the size and scale of UN deployment are insufficient for the tasks entrusted”.
He said, “The strategy of peacekeepers needing to do more with less is setting us all up for a tragedy”.
Akbaruddin said, “We need to resist the temptation of adding disproportionate mandate components, and aim at prioritisation of mandates. This would help in judicious allocation of meager resources available for implementing the mandates”.
Strategy emphasizing @UN peacekeepers “need to do more with less” is setting us all up for a tragedy – @IndiaUNNewYork on peacekeeping in Africa. pic.twitter.com/eLOF50tAFU
— Syed Akbaruddin (@AkbaruddinIndia) November 21, 2018
About the size and scale of peacekeepers he explained that only four battalions UN peacekeepers were responsible for the DRC’s (Democratic Republic of Congo) Central Sector of 500,000 sq km with more than 11 million people, it means this amount to one soldier per 158 sq km.
Akbaruddin also criticized the troops contributing countries that put conditions on deployment of their troops in Africa and said that this affect the performance of mission.
He said, “This results in unfair work distribution among various troops on the ground and thereby affect the missions’ performance”.
Recently an Indian Police peacekeeper was wounded in a rebel attack in DRC, 154 UN peacekeepers have died in DRC in UN operations.
