Secretary-General, in Message, Salutes China’s 25-Year Contribution to United Nations Peacekeeping, Noting Its Participation in 29 Missions since 1990

Following is UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s message, delivered by Cristina Gallach, Under-Secretary-General for Communications and Public Information, to the opening ceremony of the photo exhibition in commemoration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Chinese Armed Forces’ participation in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations, in New York today:

It is a pleasure to commemorate the twenty-fifth anniversary of the strong partnership for peace and security between China and the United Nations.  We honour the invaluable contribution of the Chinese Armed Forces to United Nations peacekeeping operations across the world.  The photos exhibited here provide a small taste of the major efforts undertaken by Chinese peacekeepers.

Peacekeeping saves lives, protects people and helps countries overcome war and unrest.  Chinese peacekeepers have, and continue to, contribute to this noble cause.  I pay tribute to the 15 Chinese women and men who lost their lives in the line of peace.

China is one of our top 10 troop and police contributors.  As a permanent member of the Security Council, China has taken part in 29 missions since 1990, demonstrating the country’s commitment to multilateral solutions to conflict.  Today, more than 3,000 Chinese military and police personnel, including 68 women, are serving in 10 peacekeeping missions.

We are glad to have Major General Chaoying Yang as Deputy Force Commander in our Mission in South Sudan.  Let me commend his leadership during this critical time for the country, where United Nations peacekeepers are sheltering some 200,000 civilians fleeing interethnic violence.  China has also established world-class peacekeeping training centres, demonstrating strong commitment for the future.

The recent Leaders’ Summit on Peacekeeping garnered unprecedented support from around the world to United Nations peacekeeping.  The pledges put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping will provide much-needed capabilities for our missions.

We are very grateful for such contributions.  We look forward to continuing our partnership with the Government of China through its Permanent Mission to turn these pledges into actions.