Seven more Vietnamese officers join UN peacekeeping mission
Vietnam enhances cooperation in UN peacekeeping operations

Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh (fourth from right) on Thursday in Hanoi reviewed Vietnam's preparedness for the level-2 field hospital No. 2, which is set to replace the No. 1 hospital currently operational in South Sudan. — VNA/VNS Photo Duong Giang

The conference also looked at Vietnam’s preparedness for the deployment of a sapper company and considered the possibility of sending the civil force to join the United Nations’ peacekeeping activities.

Director of Viet Nam Department of Peacekeeping Operations Maj. Gen. Hoang Kim Phung said that the level-2 field hospital No. 2 will have 63 staff members and seven reserves, including 10 women.

All training activities related to military affairs, foreign language, logistics, medical and peacekeeping knowledge have been completed basically, Phung stated.

The sapper company will have 319 members, including 19 reserves. Training works have been carried out concertedly.

Phung said that the UN has appreciated Vietnam’s efforts and asked that the defence ministry should consider deploying more diverse elements to the country’s UN peacekeeping mission, including police officers and civil forces, which the UN supports wholeheartedly.

Vietnam first joined the UN peacekeeping missions in 2014 with the establishment of the Viet Nam Department of Peacekeeping Operations of the Ministry of Defence and the dispatch of the first two officers to the UN Peacekeeping Mission in South Sudan.

After five years, Vietnam deployed 100 officers, including 12 women, to the UN’s two peacekeeping missions in South Sudan and Central African Republic.

Speaking at the conference, Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh asked relevant units to fulfil tasks and ensure safety.

Vinh told the Military Medical University to maintain a high rate of women in the mission and to focus on environment protection issues to contribute to the UN’s goals on climate change and plastic waste.

The hand-over between the level-2 field hospitals No. 2 and No. 1 should be implemented seriously and on schedule to avoid interrupting hospital operation.

He requested the Foreign Ministry to coordinate with the Defence Ministry to organise peacekeeping drills for sappers, considering it one of activities for 2020, the year that Vietnam serves as a non-permanent member at the UN Security Council.

VNS