Armenia news - Oratert.com: The world marks the International Day of United Nations peacekeepers

The world marks the International Day of United Nations peacekeepers
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Oratert News on 29/05/2012 14:22:00

To honor the United Nations (UN) Peacekeepers who gave their lives in the cause
of peace and to pay tribute to all the fine men and women who have served and
continue to serve in UN Peacekeeping operations, today is celebrated as
International Day of UN Peacekeepers worldwide. The day was designated pursuant
to UN General Assembly resolution 57/129 dated December 11, 2002.

UN Peacekeeping efforts are anchored on three  basic principles: Consent of the
parties engaged in impartiality, and  non-use of force except in self-defense
and defense of mandate. Troops  and police from around the globe are integrated
with civilian  peacekeepers to advance multidimensional mandates.
The first UN peacekeeping mission was established in 1948, when the  Security
Council authorized the deployment of UN military observers to  the Middle East
to monitor the Armistice Agreement between Israel and  its Arab neighbors. Since
then, the number of peacekeeping operations  worldwide has grown to 67. Amidst
changing landscapes of international  political and social dynamics,
peacekeeping continues to adapt to new  challenges and political realities.
As the world marks the 2012 International Day of UN Peacekeepers,  most of these
courageous and committed men and women are in the field,  fulfilling their roles
as military observers, trainers, disarmament  experts, civilian police, civil
administrators, judges and prosecutors,  economists, and human rights and
humanitarian workers. There are others  who perform more traditional
peacekeeping functions of monitoring  ceasefires and buffer zones.