UN peacekeeping operations must follow the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and the basic principles governing such operations, a Chinese envoy said Wednesday.
At a Security Council debate on UN peacekeeping, Wu Haitao, China's deputy permanent representative to the United Nations, stressed the need to uphold the principles and purposes of the UN Charter and the basic principles of peacekeeping: consent of the parties, impartiality, non-use of force except in self-defense and defense of the mandate.
He also asked to fully respect the sovereignty of host countries, strengthen communication with them and help them develop their own capacity in the areas of peace and security.
Wu emphasized the need to maintain the primacy of the political track. "The purpose of peacekeeping operations is to help host countries establish and maintain a sustainable peaceful environment and create enabling conditions for ending conflicts politically," he told the council.
A realistic, achievable mandate with well-defined objectives and highlighted priorities should be developed for each mission, he added.
There is a need to build peacekeeping partnerships, said Wu. It is necessary to motivate all stakeholders, including host countries, troop-contributing countries, financial contributors and the UN Secretariat, he said.
There is also a need to strengthen cooperation with regional organizations, said Wu. The United Nations should fully leverage the advantages of the African Union in peacekeeping operations in Africa, assist the union in forming a standing army and rapid response force of its own as soon as possible.
He asked to take an integrated approach to improve peacekeeping performance.
Better peacekeeping performance requires the Secretariat and the military, police and civilian components of a peacekeeping mission to work together, he said.
China has been an active player and contributor to UN peacekeeping, said Wu. China will continue to work with other countries to further improve the UN peacekeeping system in the interests of international peace and security, he said.
