UNITE Aware

Why in news?

• Presiding over a United Nations Security Council open debate on technology and peacekeeping, India’s External Affairs Minister announced the rollout of a technological platform ‘UNITE Aware’, to help enhance the safety of U.N. peacekeepers

About UNITE Aware:

• This initiative is based on the expectation that an entire peacekeeping operation can be visualised, coordinated and monitored on a real time basis
• It utilises modern surveillance technology for real time threat assessments to peacekeepers in maintaining security.
• The platform will be deployed initially in four UN Peacekeeping Missions: MINUSMA (Mali), UNMISS (South Sudan), UNFICYP (Cyprus) and AMISOM (Somalia).

About United Nations peacekeeping

• It is an instrument developed by UN as a way to help countries torn by conflict to create the conditions for lasting peace
• It is a joint effort between the Department of Peace Operations and the Department of Operational Support.
• Every peacekeeping mission is authorized by the UN Security Council.
• The financial resources of UN Peacekeeping operations are the collective responsibility of UN Member States.
• According to UN Charter every Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share for peacekeeping.
• As of August 2020, 120 countries were contributing a total of 81,820 personnel in Peacekeeping Operations, with Bangladesh leading the tally

Composition:

• UN peacekeepers (often referred to as Blue Berets or Blue Helmets because of their light blue berets or helmets) can include soldiers, police officers, and civilian personnel.
• Peacekeeping forces are contributed by member states on a voluntary basis.
• Civilian staff of peace operations are international civil servants, recruited and deployed by the UN Secretariat.

India’s contribution:

• India is a major contributing nation to UN peacekeeping activities
• India, which has 5,000 of its personnel deployed across nine missions, has lost 175 soldiers over the decades, according to official estimates.
• More than 2 lakh Indians have served in 49 of the 71 UN peacekeeping missions established around the world since 1948.
• India has a long tradition of sending women on UN peacekeeping missions.
• In 2007, India became the first country to deploy an all-women contingent to a UN peacekeeping mission.

Partnership for Technology in Peacekeeping

• The Partnership for Technology in Peacekeeping initiative was established in 2014 by the Information and Communications Technology Division of the former Department of Field Support (DFS)
• It’s objective is to bring greater involvement to peacekeeping through innovative approaches and technologies that have the potential to empower UN global operations

PRACTICE QUESTION

With reference to UN peacekeeping, consider the following statements:

1. According to UN Charter every Member State is legally obligated to pay their respective share for peacekeeping.

2. Every peacekeeping mission is authorized by the UN Security Council

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

(a) 1 only

(b) 2 only

(c) Both 1 and 2

(d) Neither 1 nor 2

Answer