Ulaanbaatar
PM visits Mongolian peacekeepers serving in South Sudan
Society
Ulaanbaatar /MONTSAME/ Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh visited Mongolian peacekeepers serving in South Sudan, one of the hottest spot of the world.
Mongolian peacekeepers have been serving in the United Nations Mission in South Sudan since 2012 and they are performing their duty with honor along with the peacekeepers of other countries. Currently, Mongolian troops are providing protection to more than 114 thousand refugees at one of the biggest refugee camps in the world.
Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh congratulated the Blue Helmets for fulfilling their duty towards their homeland and the world and talked to the soldiers, exchanging views on improving their livelihoods and capacity building. PM also extended gratitude on behalf of the Government and awarded the soldiers with the state medals.
A battalion of 850 Mongolian peacekeepers is on the mission in South Sudan and the military troop of 30 officers make contacts with the UN from its national capital Juba.
The eighth batch of Mongolian peacekeepers departed to South Sudan six month ago and currently provide security to the refugees in the town of Bentiu. Our female peacekeepers make up eight percent of total soldiers, while only three percent of the UN military personnel are female. The UN aims to increase the number of its female personnel up to 15 percent.
During his visit, Prime Minister also met with Ms. Hiroko Hirahara, the Head of the UN mission's field office in Bentiu. In his speech at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly, PM called on nations to unite for peace in the world. Mr. Khurelsukh noted that Mongolia pays special attention to its commitment to the UN, actively participating in the peacekeeping operations as it is an important part of the country’s foreign policy.
Ms. Hiroko Hirahara highly appreciated the physical and mental state of Mongolian soldiers as well as their skills. She also emphasized that Mongolian peacekeepers do not commit any offences and are always excited to communicate with the refugees, even teaching Mongolian to them.
Mongolia started participating in the UN peacekeeping operations in 2002, sending two officers as military observers. In 2003, it started sending troops and to date a total of 17 thousand soldiers have served in peacekeeping missions.
Moto shooting battalion of the Mongolian Armed Forces with 850 personnel started participating in the UNMISS since 2012, with a total of eight batches of more than 6000 military servants fulfilling their duties.
