Kazakhstan is proposing that Central Asian
countries jointly prepare experts for UN missions. This topic was discussed at
the first regional roundtable held at the Kazakhstan Peace Operations Center
(KAZCENT) of the Ministry of Defense in Almaty. Participants also considered
issues related to international humanitarian law, gender aspects, and the role
of Central Asian states in strengthening the UN’s position as the most
authoritative and universal international organization in ensuring regional
security. The event was timed to coincide with the International Day of United
Nations Peacekeepers.
«The most important part of the mission is to share experiences. We would
like to discuss how we organized our peacekeeping and language training
systems, as well as the strategic deployment of the contingent. We propose that
the Central Asian countries unite efforts to train contingents and experts for
participation in peacekeeping operations. It is also crucial to share
experiences and knowledge, and to foster good-neighborly relations,
cooperation, and mutual understanding, which will be the key to our successful
future participation,» Bauyrzhan Nigmetullin, head of KAZCENT,
said.
Herbert Loret, a representative of the
Department of Peace Operations at the UN headquarters in New York, gave a
positive assessment of Kazakhstan's efforts in fostering cooperation with
countries that send their contingents to participate in peacekeeping
operations.
«KAZCENT has already established a lot of partnership with member
states within and outside the region. They have deployed personnel with Italy,
they have deployed contingent with India, but we want all the member states
from Central Asia to also benefit from this relationship that KAZCENT has
established and be able also to one day deploy in peacekeeping operations like
Kazakhstan did,» said Loret.
It is worth noting that Kazakhstan is
constantly expanding its involvement in UN peacekeeping operations. Over the
past sixteen years, more than 600 Kazakh military personnel have participated
in seven UN missions across Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. At present, the
first independent peacekeeping contingent of 139 Kazakh military personnel has
been deployed on the Golan Heights. This marks a historic step for the country
in enhancing its contribution to UN peacekeeping efforts.
Editor: Гайни Жумабек
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