Chinese president pledges support for UN peacekeeping

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday announced a string of measures to back United Nations (UN) peacekeeping missions.

Addressing a peacekeeping summit, which gathered leaders and representatives of over 70 countries and international organizations, Xi said his country is to join the new UN peacekeeping capability readiness system.

China, he declared, will take the lead to set up a permanent peacekeeping police squad and will build a peacekeeping standby force of 8,000 troops.

China is also to actively consider the UN's request of sending more engineering, transportation and medical personnel to join peacekeeping missions, and will train 2,000 foreign peacekeepers and carry out 10 mine-sweeping assistance programs in the next five years, he added.

In his remarks, Xi said the international community should increase support for Africa, augment the continent's ability to maintain peace and stability, and help it resolve its own problems in its own way.

Xi announced that in the next five years, China is to provide a total of 100 million U.S. dollars of free military aid for the African Union to support the establishment of the African Standby Force and the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crisis.

China is also to deploy its first helicopter detachment in UN peacekeeping missions in Africa, said the president.

As a permanent member of the UN Security Council, China has been involved in peacekeeping missions for 25 years, and is among the biggest personnel and fund contributors, he noted.

China, Xi added, maintains that the basic principles of UN peacekeeping should be followed, Security Council resolutions be carried out in full, and no country act beyond its given authority.

The Chinese president left here for Beijing on Monday after concluding his first state visit to the United States and first appearance at the UN headquarters. Endi