On Tuesday, 21st September, Defence Minister Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca and State Secretary Simona Cojocaru, participated in the conference organized in hybrid format by the Department for Defence Policy, Planning and International Relations dedicated to the marking of 30 years of Romanian participation in UN peace-keeping missions, as well as to the celebration of the International Peace Day.

The event was organized with the special participation of the UN Under-Secretary for Peace-keeping Missions, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, General Birame Diop, military advisor to the Department for Peace-keeping Operations, State Secretary for Global Affairs from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Cornel Feruta, as well as the representatives of the Romanian institutions who participated along time in UN-led peace-keeping missions. Also, representatives of the diplomatic corps accredited to Bucharest took part in the conference.

In his allocution, the Romanian minister reiterated the importance the organization holds in the international relations arena for supporting peace-keeping and security, especially by supporting international cooperation when solving the economic, social, cultural and humanitarian issues.

Romania considers of utmost importance the involvement of the international community in supporting the crisis solutioning efforts. The UN Charter Principles provide the necessary framework for the development of certain international cooperation formula. In the spirit of the principles stipulated in the UN Charter, the common approach of the current risks and threats are an adequate way of ensuring international security and stability, Nicolae-Ionel Ciuca stated.

The Romanian Armed Forces have actively contributed to the consolidation of the UN role as leader in the field of international security and peace-keeping, while its first national contribution to a UN operation was initiated in 1991, consisting in 10 military observers in the UN Observance Mission UNIKOM in Iraq-Kuwait. The Romanian military missions consolidate Romania's presence in the UN mission structures and facilitate the fostering of the national procedures and action ways based on the knowledge and experience accumulated by the participating personnel in peace-keeping missions and operations, minister Ciuca stated during the Conference.

In his allocution made on-line, Jean-Pierre Lacroix emphasized Romania's effort during the UN-led missions: I would like to highlight the important contribution made by Romania over the last 30 years in the UN-led peace-keeping missions and operations. Romania has acted, during this period, as a responsible member of the international community, by contributing to the countering of the threats against the peace and peace keeping in many parts of the world .

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The International Peace Day was established by UN General Assembly Resolution adopted in unanimity in 1981.

The Press Office