2024-08-06 02:26:44
On this occasion, Mr. Lacroix, who is making his first official visit to Morocco, expressed his warm thanks to the Kingdom for its long-standing commitment and its long contribution to UN peacekeeping operations since its independence.
The UN diplomat praised the tireless efforts made by the Royal Armed Forces, in accordance with the Very High Instructions of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, serving under the banner of the United Nations, within the framework of the peacekeeping missions that they carry out with selflessness, dedication and commitment in the various theaters in Africa, in particular.
He also welcomed Morocco’s role, highly appreciated by the United Nations, in all negotiation processes concerning the reform of the peacekeeping architecture initiated by the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres.
“Morocco’s contribution and support to peacekeeping operations is fundamental for us,” Mr. Lacroix stressed in a statement to the press at the end of these talks, noting that the Kingdom is one of the “strongest” partners in peacekeeping, particularly for its constant contribution and support to initiatives taken to promote peacekeeping and offer appropriate responses to evolving crises.
Morocco’s “exceptional” contribution to peacekeeping operations has a price, added the UN official, who was keen to pay tribute, during his meeting with Mr. Bourita, to the 60 Moroccans who made the supreme sacrifice in the service of the UN.
“We are looking to the future with Morocco,” he observed, highlighting the current challenges facing the UN in its peacekeeping operations.
In this sense, Mr. Lacroix affirmed that “it is up to us together to respond to these challenges”, saying he was very confident that the Moroccan contribution to these efforts will be extremely important and decisive.
For his part, Mr. Bourita reiterated, during this interview, the firm and resolute support of the Kingdom, in accordance with the Very High Royal Instructions, to the various initiatives carried out by the Secretary General of the UN since 2017, in particular the UN Action for Peacekeeping Initiative “A4P”, aimed at enabling the UN to be in tune with the multidimensional challenges facing peacekeeping operations today.
Given the geopolitical changes that the world is experiencing, the UN Peacekeeping Operations, which are celebrating their 75th anniversary, require a new holistic and operational approach in line with the reality on the ground and an inclusive approach involving all stakeholders, to promote realistic and lasting political solutions, he said.
The Minister, on this occasion, expressed the Kingdom’s full support for the Summit for the Future scheduled for the 79th session of the General Assembly in 2024, with the hope that it will lead to a new vision with specific objectives for strengthening multilateralism and the overall review of the peacekeeping architecture.
He also recalled the commitments made by Morocco following the launch of its Action Plan “Women, Peace and Security”, but also the initiatives it has carried out within the United Nations, particularly in the context of the fight against hate speech and misinformation against the United Nations Blue Helmets.
It should be recalled that Morocco is ranked among the top ten countries in the world that contribute to UN peacekeeping operations. It currently deploys 1,724 peacekeepers in the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of Congo and South Sudan.
The Kingdom has chaired the Non-Aligned Movement’s coordination group on UN peacekeeping in New York for many years. It also initiated the creation of a group of affinity states on issues of combating hate speech and misinformation against peacekeepers.
The meeting was attended by the UN Military Advisor, General Birame Diop and the Civil Advisor to the UN Secretary-General, Gueladio Ba, as well as the Director of the United Nations and International Organizations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccans Abroad, Redouane Houssaini.
2024-08-06 02:26:44