Eight Indian soldiers, who lost their lives while serving in United Nations peacekeeping operations last year, are among 106 military, police and civilian personnel to be posthumously awarded a prestigious UN medal this week for their courage and sacrifice in the line of duty.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced that India will contribute an additional battalion of 850 troops for United Nations peacekeeping operations, but also raised concern that troop contributing countries have no role in decision-making.
UN Secretary-General Antnio Guterres expressed concern over the heightened tensions between India and Pakistan, calling for maximum restraint and urging both countries to step back from the brink. Guterres offered his "good offices" to both governments in the service of peace and condemned the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, emphasizing the need to bring those responsible to justice. He also stressed that a military confrontation would be detrimental and could easily spin out of control. His remarks came hours before a closed consultation of the UN Security Council on the matter, requested by Pakistan. The UN Secretary-General highlighted the need for de-escalation, diplomacy, and a renewed commitment to peace.
At the conference, they were seated across the horse-shoe-shaped table.
Indian peacekeepers suffered the second highest number of casualties in 2013 as working for the United Nations became more hazardous, with increased deliberate attacks on its personnel.
Pakistan was waiting for an opportunity to bring the Jammu and Kashmir issue to the global agenda and resorted to the terrorism route to provoke India, observes Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
UN General Assembly President Philemon Yang will visit India from February 4 to 8, his first official trip as President of the 79th session. Yang highlighted India's "remarkable transformation" over the past decade, particularly in digital and technological innovation, and plans to see how these advancements have reached the grassroots level during his visit. He also praised India's contributions to peacekeeping, humanitarian efforts, and its voice for the Global South.
Three Indian soldiers, who were part of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Congo, were killed and seven others were injured when rebel forces attacked their base in Kirumba province of the central African nation on Wednesday.
'No respite from economic pain is worth the loss of dignity and self-respect,' asserts former foreign secretary Shyam Saran.
On Jawaharlal Nehru's 61st death anniversary, Utkarsh Mishra recalls how India's first prime minister cultivated a unique role for the newly independent country on the world stage.
Dharma Guardian 2025 will primarily focus on urban warfare tactics and counter-terrorism operations and underscores the growing strategic partnership between India and Japan.
After taking control of the buffer zone along the Israeli-Syrian border, the Israel Defence Forces released photos from the Syrian side of Mount Hermon, a strategic peak in the Golan Heights on Monday morning.
"The 21st century peacekeeping must be anchored in a strong ecosystem of technology and innovation that can facilitate UN peacekeeping operations in implementing their mandates in complex environments," India's external affairs minister S Jaishankar said
The 125-strong Indian Formed Police Unit along with 12 Indian personnel of the UN Police serving in the UN Mission in Liberia were awarded medals during a parade ceremony held recently in Congo Town in Montserrado County.
Minister of State for External Affairs Shashi Tharoor, a former United Nations under-secretary general, made an unscheduled visit to quake-hit Haiti over the weekend, meeting with the survivors of the calamity, the Indian peacekeepers as well as the Caribbean nation's President, Rene Garcia Preval at his makeshift home.
An Indian police inspector has been named recipient of a prestigious international female peacekeeper award by the United Nation's police division for her "exceptional achievements" in her duty with the UN mission in Afghanistan, including her efforts towards helping victims of sexual and gender-based violence.
India shares a good relationship with the US and was not under any pressure to send troops to Iraq, the foreign secretary said.
United Nations chief Ban Ki-moon has appointed Atul Khare of India as assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping operations.
Whenever tenures of army chiefs were extended in the recent past, prime ministers were subsequently eased out of office by the same army chief, notes Rana Banerji, who headed the Pakistan desk at RA&W.
The Centre for Democracy, Pluralism and Human Rights (CDPHR) on Friday presented a report on the state of minorities in Bangladesh following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August 2024.
Five Indian peacekeepers have been honoured posthumously by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.
India on Thursday (local time) wrapped up its December Presidency of the United Nations Security Council with a special focus on terrorism, Global South and maritime security.
3 Pakistani peacekeepers in Haiti have been charged with rape, the UN said.
Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag will attend an inaugural United Nations conference on peacekeeping operations
Two United Nations peacekeepers from Pakistan have been sentenced to a year in prison and sacked from the army for raping a 14-year-old boy in Haiti, a media report said on Tuesday.
Bedi, who has served in various capacities in India, was felicitated along with 22 other military and police officers serving with the world body on Friday.
'There is no question that Putin's preference will be to avoid unpleasantness with Trump, leave alone a collision course,' observes Ambassador M K Bhadrakumar.
Early reform of the United Nations Security Council, terrorism and peacekeeping will be among the main issues that India will pursue during the world body's General Assembly session, Indian ambassador to the UN has said.
The Pakistan foreign minister has called for the expansion of the UN peacekeepers' role in Kashmir.
The Indian armed force will police the southern Darfur region, which has been wracked by ethnic conflict between Muslim and Christian militia.
The decision may be taken when the tenure of the UN peacekeeping force ends.
By proposing the addition of six permanent members this year, it may appear that it was a major concession, but in actual fact, it will make no difference to the privilege of the permanent five as the new six will have no veto, ever! points out Ambassador T P Sreenivasan.
'If you look at peacekeeping right now, it is fraught with accusations of sexual abuse or peacekeepers involved in deals that are outside their purview, human trafficking.' 'When a contingent of women walk through a camp, the women in the camp and the children respond to them, talk to them. Women are more open to talking about sexual violence and domestic violence to other women.'
The 39ft x 27ft envelop was made in a period of ten days last month by a group of 24 students belonging to the faculties of Fine Arts, Engineering, Architecture and Law, a varsity official said
A rescue team of sixth battalion of the Sikh Light Infantry, led by Commanding Officer Col S A Sharma, rushed along with all available officers and troops of the unit to the location to take control of the situation. The peacekeepers rescued six survivors from the crashed aircraft and evacuated them to the military hospital.
Several countries have dispatched their rescue teams to Haiti to begin the search operations for those who are still buried under the rubble of collapsed buildings following a devastating quake.
Last week, two BSF troopers from Rajasthan, members of the UN Peacekeeping Force in Congo, were killed by protestors. Do we need to lose lives fighting in a country not ours, in a war that is not ours and for a cause that is not ours, asks Air Commodore Nitin Sathe (retd), who served in the UNPKF in Congo.
A Pakistani officer allegedly fired at a Central Reserve Police Force camp, which is part of the United Nations Peacekeeping Mission in violence-hit Liberia, leaving a civilian seriously injured. There were no casualties in the CRPF camp. The incident took place on June 8 in Zwedru, the capital of Grand Gedeh County, one of the 15 counties in the West African country of Liberia.
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