On Monday, July 17, Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the United Nations celebrated the 75th Anniversary of the UN’s Peacekeeping Operations in a joint ceremony at the Tahrir Palace in Cairo.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs declared that the high-level event was a tribute to the outstanding efforts and sacrifices of Egyptian peacekeepers in promoting international peace and security.
Ihab Badawi, Egypt’s Assistant Minister for Multilateral Affairs & International Security, and Elena Panova, United Nations Resident Coordinator in Egypt, attended the event.
The ceremony also witnessed the attendance of Egyptian male and female peacekeepers and their families and numerous members of the Egyptian diplomatic community.
The event provided an opportunity to recognize the services of Egyptian peacekeepers.
Celebrations kicked off with the release of the UN Secretary-General’s message for Peacekeeping Day 2023, in which he acknowledged the extraordinary contribution of peacekeepers to global peace and security and extended his sympathies and solidarity to family, friends, and colleagues.
The celebration emphasized the need to involve more women in peacekeeping operations, as they are key to a more effective operation of peacekeeping operations in which Egypt has played an active role. This takes into account the role that the Egyptian peacekeeping force plays in its mission.
Furthermore, the celebration honored the dedication and selflessness of the wounded Egyptian peacekeepers and their fallen comrades who made the ultimate sacrifice in the pursuit of peace while serving under the banner of the UN.
The Secretary-General said: United Nations peacekeepers are the beating heart of our commitment to a more peaceful world. For 75 years, they have supported people and communities rocked by conflict and upheaval across the globe.
He continued: Today, on the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers, we honor their extraordinary contributions to international peace and security.
Egypt is a major supporter of the UN Secretary-General’s Action for Peace (A4P) initiative aimed at improving the effectiveness of peacekeeping operations. In November 2018, Egypt hosted a major international rally to improve the performance and effectiveness of UN peacekeeping operations.
That was the first such meeting since the start of the A4P initiative. The result was the “Cairo Roadmap for Peacekeeping”, which established a comprehensive plan of action and an equitable implementation framework for collective commitments supporting the Secretary-General’s initiative. The African Union ultimately embraced the roadmap in 2020.
During the celebration, Ambassador Badawi said: Egypt has a long-standing belief in the vital role of UN Peacekeeping in upholding international peace and security.
Badawi said Egypt’s contributions have increased over time, making the country one of the largest contributors to the military and police in peacekeeping operations.
Since 1960, Egypt has deployed more than 30,000 uniformed peacekeepers to 38 UN operations in 24 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Europe, he added.
