PANCHKHAL, Nepal -- A major component of Multinational Peacekeeping Exercise Shanti Prayas III has been the ability for the participating peacekeeping nations to develop a better understanding of how each other operates.
Throughout the exercise, peacekeepers were also allowed the opportunity to develop a better understanding of the tasks require of them while conducting U.N. peacekeeping missions with the Critical Enabler and Capability Enhancement (2CE) training.
Attended by nearly 200 Nepalese soldiers, the 2CE training provided peacekeepers with a ‘seminar’ structural learning environment and focused on expanding students’ a basic understanding of the roles of military police, basic medical care, counter IED and EOD skills, and a basic understanding of military command, control, communication and intelligence (C3I).
“Militaries are designed to deter and eventually subdue enemies of their state. But in peacekeeping that is not always the mission,” U.S. Ambassador to Nepal, Alaina B. Teplitz said in her address during the exercise’s opening ceremony. “Protecting civilians, safeguarding fledgling governments, and ensuring the safe delivery of aid to vulnerable populations often falls under your purview.”
“As former U.N. Secretary General Dag Hammarskjöld said, ‘Peacekeeping is not a soldier’s job, but only a soldier can do it,’” Teplitz continued.
During the 2CE courses, peacekeepers were trained on objectives that focused on developing high demand skills needed in several robust peacekeeping missions. These training objectives allowed the Nepalese participants prepare to confidently operate in U.N. peacekeeping operations.
No stranger to peacekeeping operations, the Nepalese Army has deployed its forces in peace support operations in the Central African Republic, Congo, Haiti, Israel, Ivory Coast, Lebanon, Liberia, Mali, Morocco, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Syria, as well as to operations in Iraq.
The Nepalese Army not only has expertise in peacekeeping, but has recent experience in both multinational operations and humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HA/DR) resulting from the 7.8 earthquake which occurred on 25 April 2015. On behalf of the Government of Nepal, the Nepalese Army provided massive assistance to the people of Nepal and managed the coordination of the multinational response to support disaster relief and humanitarian relief efforts that resulted from the earthquake.
“During that time (earthquake relief), though Birendra Peace Operations Training Center (BPOTC) didn’t have an operational role, most of the relief was provided by troops from this center,” said Nepalese Army Col. Prayog JB Rana, commandant of BPOTC. “This training will further boost our capabilities in the future.”