With participants from 22 countries, a multinational exercise on the United Nations peace operations, named "Exercise Shanti Doot-4", will kick off in Bangladesh tomorrow, under the Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI) programme.

Hosted by Bangladesh Army and sponsored by the United States Pacific Command (USPACOM), the two-week-long exercise will take place at the Bangladesh Institute of Peace Support Operation Training (BIPSOT), Rajendrapur Cantonment in Gazipur.

“Bangladesh is one of the leading troops contributing countries in the UN missions. 'Exercise Shanti Doot-4' will certainly increase credibility of Bangladesh amongst the international peacekeeping community,” said Brig Gen Md Tofayel Ahmed, chief instructor (CI) of BIPSOT, at a press briefing at ISPR directorate in the capital yesterday.

Bangladesh also hosted the exercise in 2002, 2008 and 2012. "Shanti Doot" means "Ambassador of Peace".

Around 1,319 military personnel, including 566 from 22 countries, are participating in the exercise.

The countries are: Australia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Cambodia, Canada, Fiji, Ghana, Britain, Indonesia, Jordan, Kyrgyzstan, Malaysia, Mongolia, New Zealand, Philippines, Peru, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Korea, Sri Lanka, the USA and Vietnam. A good number of members of the armed forces from Bangladesh will take part in the exercise.

“The aim of this exercise is to increase participants' interoperability and peacekeeping skills prior to deployment in UN missions,” Brig Gen Tofael Ahmed added.

Besides, a daylong strategic level seminar titled “Changing Role of UN Peacekeeping Operations -- Challenges and Operations” is scheduled for Tuesday.

The exercise will include three packages -- Field Training Event, Staff Training Event, and Critical Enabler Capability Enhancement, according to a release provided to journalists during the briefing. This training aims to promote regional peace and enhance peacekeeping capabilities of the participating countries, the release added.

The training will be facilitated by instructors with peacekeeping training experience. Maj Gen (retd) Tarique Ahmed Siddique, security affairs adviser to the prime minister, will inaugurate the exercise, which will end on March 12.