Source:

05-18-2007 17:01

China will continue to support the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping operations, a military official said on February 14 in Beijing.

China has decided recently to send non-battle troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo for UN peacekeeping operations.

"As the most widely representative international organization, the UN has played a unique role in international affairs, especially in peacekeeping," said Dai Shaoan, vice-director of the Peacekeeping Office of China's Ministry of National Defense.

Dai attributed the success of UN peacekeeping to six principles. They are:

1.Adherence to the UN Charter and peacekeeping principles.

2.The Security Council guides the operations.

3.Optimum use of peacekeeping resources.

4.Avoid double standards in operational planning and deployment.

5.Diplomatic efforts.

6.Solicit approval from countries directly involved before operation. Stick to peaceful means and avoid turning the operation into military interference.

China decided to designate non-battle troops to join the UN peacekeeping on-call system in January of 2001. By now an engineer battalion, a medical team and a transport team have joined the UN's on-call peacekeeping force.

According to the data released by the Ministry of National Defense, 1,450 Chinese servicemen, including 650 military observers and 800 engineers, have participated in peacekeeping operations in ten regions since 1990. Four servicemen died in these operations. Currently 53 Chinese military observers are in peacekeeping operations in six regions.

 

Editor:Du Xiaodan