International Day of UN Peacekeepers recognizes the courageous and dedicated men and women around the world who don the blue helmet and risk everything to create the time and space needed for conflicts to end and stabilization to take hold. We honor the vital role these men and women play in curbing violent conflicts and preventing suffering around the world, and reiterate America’s commitment to supporting, training, and equipping the international forces who make these vital missions possible.

Peacekeeping missions are a critical tool for promoting peace and reconciliation in some of the world’s most troubled countries. Today, more than 113,000 UN personnel from 124 countries serve in peacekeeping roles in 14 missions around the world — in Africa, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and Europe. The diverse, robust, and demanding mandates of each of these missions see peacekeepers working to contain violent groups, protect civilians, bolster stability, and promote health and well-being.

This year’s theme, “Protecting Civilians, Protecting Peace,” is especially timely. As the world’s leading financial supporter for UN peacekeeping, the United States demonstrates its steadfast commitment to these ideals. The Bureau of Political-Military Affairs is proud to contribute through both capacity building efforts to enable more countries step up to help meet the growing global demand for trained military and civilian personnel, as well as support for efforts to improve performance and accountability of UN peacekeeping missions.

A key building block for an effective peacekeeping force are well-trained, disciplined, and properly equipped security forces. Programs like the Global Peace Operations Initiative (GPOI) have played a pivotal role in meeting the expanding need for well-trained and adequately equipped peacekeepers capable of responding to evolving mission requirements.

GPOI brings together the Department of State and the Department of Defense to strengthen international capacity and capabilities to implement United Nations and regional peace operations. GPOI’s 54 partner nations comprise the bulk of uniformed forces engaged in UN peacekeeping operations around the world. Through our program activities, GPOI assists partner countries to enhance their self-sufficiency in training for peacekeeping operations; and, so far, over half of our GPOI partners have achieved this level. The program also delivers training and equipment to build the capacity of our partners in critical enabling capabilities such as aviation, engineering, and medical services – all of which have been persistent shortfalls in UN missions. A critical enabling capability supports not only the country that deploys it, but also the other international troops deployed across the mission. Read more

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