Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix expressed gratitude to Finland for its support to United Nations Peacekeeping and for the service and sacrifice of its military and police personnel deployed around the world.
Finland first contributed peacekeepers to the United Nations when it deployed troops to the Suez Canal in 1956 and has continued to provide uniformed personnel since. Currently, 264 Finnish uniformed peacekeepers are deployed to six UN peace operations.
215 in UNIFIL
Finland’s largest contribution of peacekeepers is to the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), where 215 personnel, including 10 women serve. Finland also contributes uniformed personnel to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS), the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), the UN Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP), the UN Truce Supervision Organization in the Middle East (UNTSO); and the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM).
“The UN appreciates the service and sacrifice of the Finnish men and women who serve in dangerous and difficult environments“, said Mr. Lacroix.
High-level of professionalism
“Finnish peacekeepers have demonstrated a high-level of professionalism and dedication, and we are deeply grateful for their continued service. The UN will never forget the sacrifice of the 46 Finnish peacekeepers, who lost their lives over the years while serving under the UN flag.” He also commended Finland for its long and strong commitment to the training of peacekeepers.
Finland supports the Secretary-General’s ‘Action for Peacekeeping’ (A4P) initiative, which calls on Member States, the Security Council, host countries, troop- and police-contributing countries, regional partners and financial contributors to renew our collective engagement with UN peacekeeping and mutually commit to reach for excellence.
For further information see: https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/service-and-sacrifice
and https://peacekeeping.un.org/en/what-is-peacekeeping
