In the 10 years of participating with the United Nations (UN) peacekeeping forces, Vietnam has not only successfully completed its missions but has also spread the image of Vietnamese blue beret soldiers as responsible, friendly, humanitarian, and peace-loving individuals to international friends.
In early 2023, in his role as a UN peacekeeper, Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Hien arrived in Bambari, Ouaka Province, the Central African Republic. This is a place with extremely harsh weather and climate, along with conflict and violence, making this poor and underdeveloped land always fraught with instability.
With the fortitude of an "Uncle Ho's Soldier," Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Hien quickly overcame difficulties, adapting and successfully completing all tasks. He earned the trust and high regard of his superiors, international colleagues, and friends. He said, "Operating independently in a multinational work environment, with differences in culture, lifestyle, language, and the complexity of work, requires every Vietnamese ‘blue beret’ officer to constantly learn and improve their professional expertise and skills; to strive to overcome difficulties, promote the spirit of international solidarity, and be ready to receive and complete assigned tasks well".
Vietnamese field hospital staff examine a local patient in South Sudan. Photo: VDPO
Colonel Jhalendra Bhattarai, commander of the Bambari combat force, said: "Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Hien has demonstrated the highest commitment to UN values and has made positive contributions to the UN peacekeeping force in Bambari in carrying out assigned tasks in a challenging combat environment". Colonel MD Rafiqul Islam, Deputy Chief of Staff of the MINUSCA Military Force, assessed that Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Hien's performance in the MINUSCA mission exceeded all expectations.
Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thi Lien, the only Vietnamese woman participating in peacekeeping in the Central African Republic, is affectionately called "Madam Lien" by international friends, local people, and the world's media.
Arriving in the Central African Republic in June 2019, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thi Lien (who was a Lieutenant Colonel at the time) and her colleagues had to face many difficulties as the country was suffering from armed conflict, political instability, and the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition to her unit's work, in her spare time, she guided and helped poor people learn how to farm to improve their lives.
Vietnamese peacekeepers teach foreign languages to students at a refugee camp in Bentui, South Sudan. Photo: Nguyen A
According to Senior Lieutenant Colonel Lien, she helped and encouraged every household with land to grow vegetables. As a result, all families around her unit's base have vegetable gardens. Some have gardens of morning glory, while others have malabar spinach or Vietnamese gourds. She also taught them to grow corn and beans to increase local food sources. Lien instructed the locals on how to make bean sprouts, cassava cakes, and even green bean powder for children to drink, improving their health. She approached the people of the Central African Republic with such simple, and sincere actions that they deeply admired her and called her "Madam Lien".
A female soldier from the field hospital gives gifts to South Sudanese children. Photo: VDPO
Just like Lieutenant Colonels Hien and Lien, Colonel Bui Duc Thanh, currently Deputy Director of Military Hospital 175, also served as a peacekeeper in Africa, specifically in South Sudan. During his challenging days in South Sudan, in addition to providing medical care, Thanh and his teammates dedicated their time to assisting and caring for the local community surrounding their base. Their gifts, though simple-often just a bundle of vegetables, a wax gourd, or notebooks and pens for the children-were deeply cherished by the villagers. Therefore, whenever they saw soldiers with the red star flag on their chests, the children would cheer, "Vietnam!"
The stories of Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Van Hien, Senior Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Thi Lien, and Colonel Bui Duc Thanh are just everyday occurrences of what Vietnamese blue beret soldiers have done to bring peace and happiness to the people of faraway Africa over the past 10 years.
In June 2014, Vietnam officially sent its first two military officers to serve in the UN peacekeeping mission in South Sudan. Currently, Vietnam ranks 39th out of 117 countries contributing troops and police to UN peacekeeping missions, with a regular deployment of 274 personnel, including 36 female military officers.
Over the past 10 years of participating in UN peacekeeping operations, Vietnamese military units and officers have consistently fulfilled all tasks assigned by the UN and the Ministry of National Defense. Many officers, upon completing their terms, have been recognized by the UN for outstanding performances and awarded certificates of merit.
Peacekeepers play the Vietnamese game "blind man's buff" with people in South Sudan. Photo: Nguyen A
Notably, 100% of the personnel of the Vietnam People's Army have been awarded the UN Peacekeeping Medal by the commanders of the missions on behalf of the UN Security Council. The number of Vietnamese officers who have excelled in their missions is significantly higher than the global average of UN member states.
In implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, Vietnam has deployed approximately 100 female military personnel to peacekeeping missions over the past 10 years. Of these, female officers serving individually account for about 20%, significantly higher than the UN average of less than 10%. Additionally, female military personnel in level-2 field hospitals account for 16-21%, exceeding the UN average of 12%. Vietnamese engineering units also include about 12% female personnel, while other countries' peacekeeping engineering units do not have female participation.
Captain Pham Van Ha, head of the logistics department (second left), and Second Lieutenant Luu Tuan Hung during a trip to a market near the field hospital base in South Sudan. Photo: Nguyen A
Vietnamese peacekeepers with UN peacekeepers in South Sudan. Photo: Nguyen A
People in South Sudan perform a traditional dance. Photo: Nguyen A
While carrying out missions in the field, Vietnamese blue beret soldiers have demonstrated the qualities of "Uncle Ho's Soldiers," building and maintaining good relationships with local people and authorities, earning their affection, trust, and respect through practical support activities to improve people's lives, such as road construction, teaching, agricultural guidance, building schools and classrooms, drilling wells, donating generators, providing medical care, distributing masks and free medicine. The Vietnamese People's Army's new, humane, and compassionate approach to community service has been recognized by mission commanders and UN leadership as a good initiative and model, and has been likened to a "breath of fresh air" in UN peacekeeping operations.
Vietnamese peacekeepers coordinate with other UN forces in South Sudan. Photo: VDPO
According to assessments by mission commanders and UN agencies, the Vietnamese peacekeeping force has made significant efforts in fulfilling assigned tasks, demonstrating professionalism, creativity, and high discipline, leaving positive impressions on mission commanders, international friends, and colleagues.
Officers from the Vietnamese field hospital interact with UN peacekeepers in South Sudan. Photo: Nguyen A
It can be affirmed that the deployment of forces to participate in UN peacekeeping missions is a good policy of the Party and State, deepening the foreign policy and national defense of the Vietnamese military. Vietnam's participation and contribution to the global peace mission helps to affirm Vietnam's responsible membership in the international community, enhance Vietnam's status, prestige, and role in addressing international issues, create favorable conditions for promoting international cooperation on both bilateral and multilateral levels, strengthen strategic trust, and maintain a peaceful and stable environment for national development.
Story: Thong Thien
Photos: Nguyen A, Thong Hai/VNP & VDPO
Translated by Hong Hanh