Hanoi (VNA) – UN Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix has lauded Vietnam’s extraordi🌳nary efforts in addressing post-war consequences and contributing to UN peacekeeping, highlighting the country’s strong political will and long-term vision.

Speaking at a press briefing in Hanoi on June 13, Lacroix acknowledged the immense challenges Vietnam continues to face, notably from unexploded ordnance (UXO) left over from war. With 17.7% of the country’s total area still affected by UXO, the challenge is huge. At the current pace of clearance – around 40,000 to 50,000 hectares annually – it could take Vietnam between 150 and 180 years to clear the estimated 5.6 million hectares of affected land, he said. UXO contamination severely hampers socio-economic development, posing threats to infrastructure projects, agriculture, and education, he added. Nevertheless, Lacroix praised Vietnam’s “strong political determination” and its sense of national ownership, noting that the government has set an ambitious goal to significantly reduce this timeframe. Vietnam is currently formulating a project to shorten the UXO clearance timeline to 35–40 years, aiming to render contaminated land safe to a depth of 0.5 metres by 2065. To support this, it is drafting a new ordinance on post-war UXO remediation and a national strategy on mine risk education. The UN official identified three key lessons from Vietnam’s approach that are worth sharing with the international community: strong political determination and national ownership; robust institutional frameworks, including a national steering committee and a long-term action plan; and clear policy guidance on bomb and mine action. He also highlighted the importance of linking mine action with broader goals of socio-economic development. Lacroix stressed that the UN is committed to continued support for Vietnam's efforts in overcoming the consequences of bombs and mines, ensuring that people can live in safety and peace. He praised Vietnam as a responsible, active member of the international community, strongly committed to multilateralism and maintaining a sustainable partnership with the UN. The country, he said, serves as a “model” of political commitment and clear action in the field of mine remediation. In addition to UXO clearance, Vietnam has earned international recognition for its growing contributions to UN peacekeeping missions, according to the UN official. Vietnamese peacekeepers, including police officers, engineers in Abyei, and level-2 field hospitals in South Sudan, have made notable impacts and have been appreciated by local communities. The Ministry of Public Security is also preparing personnel for future deployments.

Lacroix expressed his gratitude and appreciation for Vietnam's cooperative contributions to the UN in general and to the field of peacekeeping in particular. Since June 2014, the Vietnamese Ministry of National Defence has deployed nearly 1,100 personnel to UN peacekeeping operations and the UN Headquarters, in both individual and unit-based formats. Individually, Vietnam has sent approximately 153 officers to serve as staff officers and military observers at UNMISS (South Sudan), MINUSCA (Central African Republic), UNISFA (Abyei), and at the UN Headquarters in New York. In terms of unit deployments, Vietnam has operated six level-2 field hospitals at the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) since October 2018. Since May 2022, three engineering teams have been dispatched to the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei. Notably, Vietnam has one of the highest proportions of female personnel participating in UN peacekeeping missions, with women making up over 16% of its deployed forces, well above the global average. The Ministry of National Defence has committed to maintaining and increasing female participation, targeting a rate of over 20% for individual roles and over 15% for unit-based deployments by the 2025–2030 period./.