UN thanks Türkiye over support for peacekeeping missions

By Servet Gunerigok

WASHINGTON (AA) - The UN on Wednesday thanked Türkiye for its efforts to support the organization's peacekeeping missions.

"Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix thanked Türkiye for its strong support to United Nations Peacekeeping and the service and sacrifice of its uniformed personnel deployed around the world under the UN flag," said a UN statement.

It called Türkiye "a longstanding contributor of peacekeepers" to the UN, saying the nation currently provides 179 military and police personnel, including 24 women, to eight UN peace operations.

Türkiye is the 60th largest contributor, according to the statement. Its largest deployment is with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), where 110 peacekeepers serve.

Türkiye also provides uniformed personnel to the UN missions in South Sudan, Mali, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Central African Republic, Kosovo, Sudan and Somalia.

"The UN particularly appreciates Türkiye’s deployment of naval personnel and ships to UNIFIL’s Maritime Task Force, which is integral to maintaining peace," said Lacroix. "The Turkish military and police make a tangible difference wherever they serve."