Press Releases 2004

U.S. Participates in Multinational Peace Support Operations Seminar

April 19, 2004

NEW DELHI -- The Indian Ministry of External Affairs, the United States Pacific Command, and the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations are co-sponsoring a multinational seminar dealing with issues in peace support operations. As many as eighty representatives from civilian agencies, militaries and civilian police of more than a dozen nations and international organizations are participating.

The seminar is the 14th in a series of related conferences, seminars, tabletop games and workshops held over the past three years under the name Asia-Pacific Peace Operations Capacity Building Program. With the success of countries in the Asia Pacific region in building indigenous peacekeeping capacities and capabilities, the program will now continue as the Asia Pacific Peace Operations Enhancement Program.

The focus of the program is on networking, sharing information, and improving awareness among the participants, which they then take back to their home countries for assimilation into national defense programs. The Center of Excellence in Disaster Management and Humanitarian Assistance develops the program and related events in conjunction with co-sponsors and hosting nations.

In his opening remarks, US Deputy Chief of Mission Robert O. Blake, Jr. said few countries could match India's long and varied record in peacekeeping operations. Stating that Indian troops have won universal admiration for their professionalism and excellence, he said: "It is precisely India's experience in multilateral teamwork that makes it the perfect co-host for this effort."

Noting that over the past two years US-Indian military cooperation has played a key role in the "transformation" of US-India relations, Mr. Blake said the scope and complexity of the military cooperation across the board has expanded dramatically over the last several years. "Our cooperation now encompasses numerous training exercises, seminars, personnel exchanges, senior officer visits, functional visits, unit and ship visits, subject matter expert exchanges, enhanced organizational relationships, technological cooperation, and expanding defense sales," he said. During the past year alone there have been 10 major joint exercises, he added.

Lt. Gen. (Retired) Satish Nambiar, Director, United Service Institution of India, spoke on the future of peacekeeping. The United Services Institute's Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping (USI-CUNPK) is the training center for Indian peacekeeping. Mr. B. S. Prakash, Joint Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs, gave a keynote address.

The seminar will consider five topics: (1) Mission Command and Control, (2) Civil-Military Cooperation, (3) Transition Issues in Complex Emergencies, (4) the Military in Peace Making & Peace Building, and (5) End States & Exit Strategies. Participants will discuss the results of those seminars and identify key lessons learned and other critical mission activities. They also develop a concise synopsis of their discussion for general distribution and use.

On the first day of the seminar-game, participants will be briefed by a group of subject matter experts, who are individuals acknowledged as having considerable personal experience in a subject. Topics covered include Evolving Peace Operations, Humanitarian Operations, Role of the Military, and Interagency Planning. These presentations provide a common knowledge base for all participants. The week continues with small group discussions.

This is the first event in the series co-sponsored by the Government of India. Indian peacekeeping forces have benefited from gathering and disseminating shared experiences and ideas gained through their participation in 9 of the previous 13 events, and by contributing to the development of standardized generic training modules of the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations' Training and Evaluation Service. India has also hosted similar multinational peacekeeping events in the interest of networking with other nations who contribute to peacekeeping efforts worldwide.

India is a major, long-term participant in UN peacekeeping missions for many years, and has participated in 38 since the first mission in 1948, experiencing 109 fatalities in 17 of those missions. In February 2004, India fielded 247 civilian police officers, 36 military observers, and 2,536 peacekeeping troops in 7 UN missions around the world out of a total of 13, for which it ranks number 4 of 94 troops contributing nations. Indian peacekeepers, military observers and civilian police officers are deployed to operations in Africa (MONUC, UNMEE, UNAMSIL), the Middle East (UNIFIL), and Europe (UNFICYP, UNMIK). MINUCI. 1,150 of the 2,536 Indian peacekeeping troops serve in the UN Mission to Eritrea/Ethiopia (UNMEE).