Minara Helen: A delegation of 26 members from the US Army War College visited the Bangladesh Permanent Mission to the United Nations in New York. Local time on Friday (October 21) in view of Bangladesh’s continued progress in UN peacekeeping operations and the reputation of Bangladeshi peacekeepers, a delegation from the US Army War College visited the Bangladesh Mission every year as part of mutual exchange of experiences. The delegation of 26 members also included a high-ranking officer of the Bangladesh Army who was training at the said college.
The Permanent Representative (PR) of Bangladesh to the UN, Ambassador Muhammad A. Muhith, welcomed the delegation to the mission. In his welcome address, the PR focused on Bangladesh’s important contribution to UN peacekeeping operations as the topmost troops and police-contributing country and discussed about Bangladesh’s engagements in maintaining international peace & security, sustaining peace and peacebuilding discourses at the UN. The PR highlighted the visionary leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the graduation of Bangladesh from the LDC category. He also mentioned Bangladesh’s leadership in adopting two resolutions titled `Culture of Peace’ and `Women, Peace and Security’ at the United Nations. He also mentioned few other resolutions which were introduced by Bangladesh, such as Vision Impairment, Prevention of Drowning, Natural Plants Fibers and Doha Programme of Action (DPOA). In his speech, he stated that Bangladesh is now serving as the chair of the Peace Building Commission, the President of the UN Women Executive Board and recently Bangladesh was elected as the member of the UN Human Rights Council saecuring highest votes from the Asia-Pacific Group. Ambassador Muhith also highlighted the leadership of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in combating the Covid-19 pandemic in Bangladesh. The PR also discussed Bangladesh’s various initiatives at the UN to resolve the Rohigya Crisis. He recognized that the multidimensional cooperation between the militaries of Bangladesh and the United States is increasing day by day.
Defense Advisor (DA) of Bangladesh Permanent Mission Brigadier General Md Sadequzzaman briefed the delegation about Bangladesh’s engagement in the UN peacekeeping operations and the dedicated role played by the Bangladeshi peacekeepers. He said, “Bangladesh was always at the forefront of United Nations peacekeeping operations. The participation of all branches of military forces including the Bangladesh Army, Navy, Air Force, and Police in peace keeping operation is rare in the world. So far, 1,81,661 Bangladeshi peacekeepers have participated in 56 UN peacekeeping missions. Currently, there are 7144 Bangladeshi peacekeepers deployed in 09 different missions. As many as 165 peacekeepers lost their lives in the line of duty while 258 have been injured”. The DA also mentioned that there are currently 542 women peacekeepers deployed in the peacekeeping missions. At present, Bangladesh Police has a female Formed Police Unit (FPU) in the mission. He also portrayed Bangladesh’s success stories in bringing peace to various war-ravaged parts of the world for more than three decades.
The US Army War College delegation applauded the Bangladesh Mission for the valuable exchange of information, excellent arrangement, and warm hospitality. The Permanent Representative thanked the U.S. Army War College delegation for choosing Bangladesh Permanent Mission for their visit.
BP/SM
