INDIA AND UNITED NATIONS
India stands solidly committed to assist the UN in the maintenance of international peace and security. We have a proud history of UN peacekeeping dating back to its inception in the 1950s. We have contributed nearly 100,000 troops, and participated in more than 40 missions. India has also provided and continues to provide eminent Force Commanders for UN Missions. We salute the 118 Indian peacekeepers, as well as those from other countries, who have made the supreme sacrifice and laid down their lives while serving in UN missions. India has considerable experience in demining activities and has made significant contributions to the de-mining work in various peacekeeping missions. India has also provided opportunities for training to military officers from different countries. The United Services Institute of India has also earned a name for itself in the area of thematic training for personnel of peacekeeping operations.
India feels that the international community must grasp the rapid changes that are underway in the nature and role of contemporary peacekeeping operations. The Security Council’s mandates to UN peacekeeping operations are too broad and have very little correlation with the ability of the organization to deliver. The Security Council should invite non-Council members to participate in the decisions of the Security Council concerning the employment of contingents of that Member’s armed forces. This means that troops contributing countries should be fully involved at all stages and in all aspects of mission planning. Secondly, Field Support needs far greater attention. It is our view, based on the experience of supporting the large contingents that we currently have under deployment, that the Department of Field Support needs far greater internal coordination and client-orientation. It has also been our view that the Department of Field Support needs to function as a military support operation with a lean command structure. We feel that there is a need for far greater engagement of Member States on functioning of the DFS. Finally, India is forward looking in terms of the approach towards management of troops in the different areas of operation. India fully supports implementation of a policy of zero tolerance with regard to conduct and discipline of troops including, sexual exploitation and abuse. UN peacekeeping arrangements must be in accordance with UN Chapter VIII. The real challenge before the UN is to strengthen peacekeeping without regionalizing it. India favours the induction of more female peacekeepers and encourages DPKO to be more proactive in this process.
India’s unique combination of being the largest democracy in the world with a strong tradition of respect for rule of law and the successful experience in post-colonial nation-state building makes it particularly relevant in the context of twenty-first century peacebuilding. India believes that there are two levels of intervention in support of a peace process-intervention at the national and local levels-and that both processes must move in lockstep. While doing so, there is an imperative need to ensure that the supporting external interventions focus on delivering a peace dividend, expanding national capacity and ensuring the expansion of basic economic capacity so that surplus labour—especially the youth—can be gainfully employed. Further, India believes that coordination and consultation within the UN (the important strands of relationships among the Peacebuilding Commission, the Security Council, the General Assembly and the ECOSOC), between the UN and the international financial institutions, especially the World Bank, must also be expanded.
