It is “extremely critical” that major “gaps” in equipment and staff needed to maintain UN peacekeeping operations are filled “in the shortest possible time”.

That’s according to Atul Khare, Under-Secretary-General for Field Support, which administers a budget of more than $7 billion to sustain 35 peacekeeping and other UN field missions around the world.

He was speaking just ahead of the second UN Peacekeeping Defence Ministerial conference taking place on Tuesday and Wednesday in Vancouver, Canada.

Senior UN officials and defence ministry teams from more than 80 countries will meet to discuss and address the challenges peacekeepers face in the field, and it’s hoped dozens of pledges will be made.

Matt Wells asked Mr Khare how important the conference was to the UN’s peacekeeping operations.

Duration: 5’10”