THE TRICOLOR OF PEACEKEEPING

By Ma Miaomiao

‘Wearing the blue helmet makes you feel like a heavyweight in the pursuit and support of peace，” He Yongxue， a battalion commander in the Chinese Peoples Liberation Army （PLA）， told Beijing-based PLA Daily. Selected as a member of the new peacekeeping infantry battalion to South Sudan， he needs to switch roles and throw himself into the intense training schedule before leaving China to embark on his new mission.

He participated in the Shared Destiny-2021 UN peacekeeping field training exercise from September 6 to 15. This is the first-ever such event to be organized by the Chinese military， and also the first multilateral drill to assess the achievements of Chinas peacekeeping standby force.

Joint events like Shared Destiny-2021 are important as a means of improving UN peacekeeping capabilities as well as its talent pool. Chinas armed forces have thus far conducted various peacekeeping exercises and training programs together with the UN， other countries and regional organizations.

Over the past three decades， Chinas armed forces have dispatched about 50，000 peacekeepers to 25 UN peacekeeping missions. Currently， a total of 2，241 Chinese peacekeepers are serving at the UN headquarters in New York， U.S.， as well as across seven mission areas.

Among the five permanent members of the UN Security Council， China has become the second largest contributor to the UN peacekeeping budget and the largest supplier of troops to UN peacekeeping operations. “This has been a great achievement and an inspiration for many developing countries，” Kim Won Soo， former Under Secretary General of the UN， wrote in China Daily.

A rock

The blue helmet， marked with the letters UN in clear white， is the symbol of UN peacekeepers. The background color of the UN flag shines bright and guides them in contributing to world peace.

“China has played an active role in enhancing world order， promoting multilateralism， and tackling key global challenges，” Khuon Sodary， Second Vice President of the Cambodian National Assembly and a member of the Standing Committee of the Cambodian Peoples Party， told Xinhua News Agency.

The country has sent its peacekeepers to join operations in war-torn countries， which “underline the noble and historic role of China and its people in assisting countries around the world to achieve long-term peace， stability and development，” she added.

Over the years， Chinese military peacekeepers have left their footprints in over 20 countries and regions，including Liberia， Lebanon， the Democratic Republic of the Congo（DRC）， South Sudan and Mali.