Wreath-laying ceremony at the Training School for Multinational Peacekeeping Forces (PKO), Kampong Speu Province

Check against Delivery 

H.E. General Tea Seiha, Deputy Prime Minister, Minister of National Defense

H.E. General Sem Sovanny, First Vice Chairman of the National Coordination Committee and Director General of National Center for Peacekeeping Force 

Ambassadors, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Families and friends of UN peacekeepers, 

On behalf of the United Nations in Cambodia, it is an honour to be here with you today to pay tribute to our peacekeepers. 

[Pause for translation]

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

Today, we express our gratitude to the men and women who have served under the UN flag, upholding the principles of the United Nations in the name of peace. 

We honour today the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace. 

I pay particular tribute to the UN peacekeepers who served with the United Nations Transitional Authority in Cambodia (UNTAC) in 1992- 1993, and the Cambodian peacekeepers killed while serving in peacekeeping operations abroad. 

We honour their bravery and ultimate sacrifice. Although their lives were cut short, their legacy will live on. 

[Pause for translation]

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen

Peace is a noble vision, and one that requires commitment, sacrifice and strength in order to be realized. It also cannot be achieved through one action or actor alone. It requires change at multiple levels, for multiple actors and a commitment to act together for peace across all its dimensions.

United Nations peacekeeping is a critical tool in this effort, and one that has proven to be a vital element in the investment in global peace, security and prosperity.

[Pause for translation]

UN Peacekeepers deploy to some of the most complex and difficult places, protecting some of the world’s most vulnerable communities.​ 

Their unwavering commitment to maintaining peace and stability, protecting civilians, and facilitating humanitarian assistance has been highly appreciated. 

It is important to acknowledge that UN peacekeepers do not work in isolation. It is only through partnership with Member States, civil society, and communities, that peacekeeping operations can have a true chance of improving the lives those in need.

[Pause for translation]

The United Nations expresses our deepest gratitude to the civilian, police and military peacekeepers deployed around the world today. 

We pay our respects to the countries, including the Kingdom of Cambodia, that contribute these brave and dedicated women and men, and I express my deepest thanks to the families and communities who stand behind each and every blue helmet that is deployed.

Thank you very much. 

[Pause for translation]