Papua New Guinea moves closer to contributing first blue helmets to UN missions

The Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea announced to the General Assembly’s annual high-level debate today that his country is one step closer to sending troops to contribute to United Nations peacekeeping operations.

“In the area of international peace and security, the world, unfortunately, is no safer today than when the United Nations was established,” Michael Somare said, pointing to the situation in Afghanistan, Iraq, the Korean Peninsula, and the Middle East.

“Likewise, religious conflict and ethnic tensions continue to be perpetrated in many parts of Africa, Latin America and Eastern Europe,” he added.

The Prime Minister called on the international community to amplify its actions to address these issues.

“Papua New Guinea commends the efforts of the UN peacekeeping forces, many of which have to operate under very trying circumstances,” he said, voicing his appreciation for troop-contributing countries “for bearing this onerous responsibility on all our behalf.”

Mr. Somare announced that his country’s Government has passed its International Obligations Bill, providing the legal framework for Papua New Guinea’s participation in UN peacekeeping operations.

He also called for stepped-up global action to tackle the scourge of terrorism and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons.