UN Peacekeepers:
India to gift 2 lakh vaccine doses to UN peacekeepers.
- The announcement was made by External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar during his remarks at a UN Security Council open debate on the implementation of resolution 2532 (2020), passed last year.
UNSC Resolution 2532:
The resolution:
- Demands a general and immediate cessation of hostilities in all situations on its agenda” (i.e., those already identified by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)).
- Calls for all parties engaged in armed conflicts (i.e., including those not specifically on the UNSC agenda) to “engage immediately in a durable humanitarian pause for at least 90 consecutive days”.
- Specifically excludes UNSC designated terrorist groups, e.g., the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant.
Peacekeeping:
- United Nations Peacekeeping is a joint effort between the Department of Peace Operations and the Department of Operational Support.
- Every peacekeeping mission is authorized by the Security Council.
- The financial resources of UN Peacekeeping operations are the collective responsibility of UN Member States.
- According to the UN Charter, every Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share for peacekeeping.
- Composition:
- UN peacekeepers (often referred to as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets because of their light blue berets or helmets) can include soldiers, police officers, and civilian personnel.
- Peacekeeping forces are contributed by member states on a voluntary basis.
- The civilian staff of peace operations is international civil servants, recruited and deployed by the UN Secretariat.
