PHNOM PENH: The President of the 76th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), Abdulla Shahid, has said that Cambodia is a model country for others to follow as it has transformed itself from a state in need of UN peacekeepers, to a nation that is sending its own volunteers to keep the world at peace.
Addressing the President of the National Assembly of Cambodia, Heng Samrin, during a meeting on Monday morning, 22 August, the UNGA President, Abdulla Shahid, praised Cambodia for its history of struggle along with the dedication of the National Assembly President to liberate the country from genocide, allowing the country to achieve the level of development present today. He recalled how Cambodia has transformed itself from a country in need of peacekeepers to a country that now sends its own peacekeepers to help maintain peace in other parts of the world.
"Cambodia is a model country that other countries should follow because Cambodia became a country with a UN peacekeeping force in 1993, but now Cambodia has sent its own volunteer forces in the framework of the United Nations to carry out humanitarian missions to maintain peace in many countries around the world," said President Shahid.
National Assembly President Heng Samrin thanked the UN for its support and cooperation in the development of Cambodia, especially the provision of Covid-19 vaccines, technical equipment and medical equipment that contributed to the success of the country’s fight against Covid-19. He underlined that the development of Cambodia today is thanks to the support of the UN.
"The second establishment of the Kingdom of Cambodia was with the active support of the United Nations, which enabled Cambodia to actively participate with international partners in both the executive and legislative frameworks, and in achieving global agendas, including the 2030 Global Development Agenda," said President Heng Samrin. "In the early 1990s, under the Paris Peace Agreement in Cambodia, the United Nations sent peacekeepers to help Cambodia.”
The National Assembly President further emphasized that from 2006 until now, Cambodia has joined the UN’s cause for world peace and humanity by sending peacekeeping forces, including more than 8,000 people, to 11 missions in nine different countries. This active and valuable participation ranks Cambodia 28th out of 122 countries in peacekeeping operations.
