NEW YORK, FEBRUARY 12 – As the first contributors to peacekeeping operations in the Western Group (WEOG), as well as a co-founding member with Bangladesh of the “Group of Friends for leading on environmental management in the field”, Italy today stressed that, beyond being instrumental in “doing no harm” to the ecosystems of the host country, environmental management can strengthen operational effectiveness and efficiency in many ways, from enhancing the safety and security of peacekeepers to restoring confidence locally and building a positive legacy after the mission has left.
“In today’s fast evolving security scenarios, peacekeeping remains a very powerful instrument at the disposal of the international community to prevent, contain and resolve conflicts and still provides a crucial contribution to our collective and comprehensive efforts to restore and sustain peace”, the Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Stefano Stefanile said during a meeting of the Special Committee on Peacekeeping Operations of the United Nations (C34). Stefanile stressed that peacekeeping operations should have well defined and realistic mandates. They should also have a clear political strategy and all the necessary means to fully implement their tasks.
Pre-deployment and in-mission training is also essential. The Italian Ambassador recalled that Italy has a strong record in training military and police personnel for peace operations and stands ready to provide its contribution and mentioned the role of the CoESPU Training Center in Vicenza, which already entertains a very productive cooperation with the relevant UN Department.
To read the address od Ambassador Stefanile, please click here. (@OnuItalia)
