Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh (left) and Chairman of the EU Military Committee Mikhail Kostarakos (Source: VNA) Brussels (VNA) – Vietnam willsend more officers, especially females, to participate in the UN peacekeepingoperations, said Deputy Defence Minister Sen. Lieut. Gen. Nguyen Chi Vinh.
Speaking at a recent meeting of EUchiefs of defence in Belgium as an honorary guest, Vinh said Vietnam isscheduled to run the level-2 field hospital in Bentiu, South Sudan in thesecond quarter of this year to replace the UK’s level-2 field hospital.
In 2019 or 2020, Vietnam willdispatch a peacekeeping military engineer unit to a suitable mission, thedeputy minister added.
Applauding the EU’s contributions topeacekeeping, Vinh affirmed that Vietnam will make more contributions to UNpeacekeeping operations within its capacity and foreign polices.
He noted that after nearly four yearsof joining UN peacekeeping operations, Vietnam has sent 20 officers to work atthe UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilisation Mission in Central AfricanRepublic and the UN Mission in South Sudan, including a female officer.
Vinh suggested an official defencepartnership between Vietnam and the EU by pushing the signing of a Vietnam-EUjoint vision statement on national defence, and a memorandum of understandingon bilateral defence ties, including in UN peacekeeping activities.
He also called on Vietnam and the EUto increase the exchange of delegations and mutual consultations at multilateralforums and mechanisms to which both sides are members such as the ASEANRegional Forum and the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus.
In peacekeeping, the two sides shouldintensify the sharing of professional knowledge and experience throughtraining, workshop organisation and exchange of experts to help Vietnam improvecapacity and step up affiliation between the Vietnam Peacekeeping Departmentand peacekeeping training centres of the UN.
During the two-day conference, whichwas held by the EU Military Committee, the delegates discussed security anddefence issues relating to the EU and EU campaigns.
It brought together chiefs of defencefrom 28 EU member countries and guests from the UN, NATO, the US Africa Command,the Republic of Korea, Jordan, Serbia, Cuba and Vietnam.
On the sidelines of the event, Vinhhad bilateral meetings and working sessions with several EU chiefs of defence andrepresentatives of the European External Action Service.-VNA
VNA
