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.
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.
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.
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.
'The Indian battalion had played an important role in keeping the community safe as well as encouraging local peace efforts'
'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.
'Indian Army officers always lead their men into battle or combat. Pakistani officers are seldom seen at the front.'
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.
India has criticised the UN over lack of any 'specific concrete action' by member states to penalise those who attack.
India, the largest contributor to the United Nation peacekeepers, has stressed on the need to ensure missions are made relevant to current realities and peacekeepers are not tasked with achieving 'Christmas tree-like' mandates.
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.
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.
An Indian peacekeeper has been accused of sexual misconduct in the UN peacekeeping mission in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Anayansi Lopez of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations has said.
Eleven UN peacekeepers were killed on Wednesday as the strongest earthquake in more than 200 years jolted Haiti as officials said the 141-strong Indian contingent in the Caribbean nation is safe.
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.
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.
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.
'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.'
Naib Subedar Ram Kirpal Singh, part of the nine-guard peace-keeping force deployed in Congo, was killed when their camp came under heavy rocket attack on Monday morning.
Army officials in New Delhi said two of the 32 injured soldiers require surgery but are not critical.
An Indian soldier on a United Nations peacekeeping mission in strife-torn Congo was killed during a firefight between the Congolese Army and armed assailants.
Indian Army Chief General Dalbir Singh Suhag will attend an inaugural United Nations conference on peacekeeping operations
The bodies of the five Indian soldiers, who were killed in a United Nations peacekeeping mission in South Sudan, arrived in India on Thursday morning. The Indian Army personnel, including a Lieutenant Colonel, were killed on Tuesday and four others were injured when their 32-member convoy was ambushed by armed men in Gurmuck in the volatile state of Jonglei in South Sudan.
A peace keeping role for India is a distinct possibility. Indian military has both the numbers and experience to carry out this job, observes Colonel Anil A Athale (Retd).
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.
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.
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 killing of the militiamen was a "proportionate" reaction to the slaying of 9 Bangladeshi peacekeepers last week, the UN said.
Seven United Nations peacekeepers from the west African country of Niger were killed in an ambush while they were on a patrol in a southwest region of Ivory Coast, an attack which drew strong condemnation from UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Security Council.
Indian peacekeepers have rescued seven women from Mai Mai rebels in the North Kivu province of the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is often referred to as the rape capital of the world.
A Lt Colonel was among the five army personnel killed on Tuesday when their 32-member convoy came under attack in Gurmuck in the volatile state of Jonglei, South Sudan.
Armed to the teeth with mortar guns, assault rifles, riot-control weapons and bullet-proof vehicles, the personnel drawn from various battalions of the force are thrilled at the opportunity to don the UN's blue helmet.
Currently only one per cent of military personnel and only four per cent of the police are women.
Five Indian peacekeepers have been honoured posthumously by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan.
Recent attacks on Hindus in Bangladesh have ignited political debate in West Bengal, with the ruling TMC and opposition BJP utilizing the issue to advance their respective agendas. While the TMC emphasizes communal harmony and calls for international intervention, the BJP criticizes the TMC's inaction and links the situation to its push for the Citizenship Amendment Act. The issue has also brought other opposition parties into the fray, with all sides highlighting the interconnectedness of the region's socio-political fabric.
The Indians, however, are facing an acute shortage of water and essential supplies due to the hostilities.
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.
3 Pakistani peacekeepers in Haiti have been charged with rape, the UN said.
The UN Mission in Liberia took over peacekeeping duties from the Economic Community of West Africa States in October 2003 to bring about a thaw among warring ethnic groups.
