Bangladesh Army chief General Aziz Ahmed has separately sat with UN Undersecretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix and Undersecretary-General for Operational Support Atul Khare in the US.
During the meetings in New York, General Aziz Ahmed iterated Bangladesh’s steadfast commitment and continued support to the UN peace operations, according to the latest ISPR press release on Thursday.
Urging the deployment of more Bangladeshi peacekeepers in UN peacekeeping missions globally, he also requested for appointing more Bangladeshi officers in senior positions of the peace operations and UN headquarters.
At their meeting on Tuesday afternoon, UN Undersecretary-General Lacroix lauded the professionalism, discipline, dedication and bravery of the Bangladeshi peacekeepers deployed in different UN peacekeeping missions.
He thanked the Bangladesh government for its enormous contribution to the peace operations.
Bangladesh now ranks as the top troops and police-contributing country in the world.
General Aziz Ahmed has been on an official visit to the US since January 29 at the invitation of the country’s government.
Lacroix assured Aziz of his support for deploying more Bangladeshi peacekeepers in the future, said the release.
In his meeting with Atul Khare on Monday, the army chief thanked him for enlisting Bangladesh Biman as a carrier of UN peacekeepers.
USG Atul Khare, in his reaction, thanked Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina for her invaluable contribution to peacekeeping, climate change, women empowerment, and humanitarian issues.
He also thanked the Bangladesh government for its significant role in transporting UN peacekeepers by Bangladesh Biman amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
They also talked on the issues of Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Air force, and Bangladesh Police in UN Peace operations.
Apart from the above meetings, General Aziz on Tuesday also met Lieutenant General Carlos Humberto Loitey, military adviser for UN peacekeeping operations.
On the same day, the chief of army staff held a meeting with Ambassador Rabab Fatima, the permanent representative of Bangladesh to the UN.
He was accompanied by Major General Jubaer Salehin, the commandant of Defence Services Command and Staff College, and Brigadier General M Sadequzzaman, the defense adviser of Bangladesh's permanent mission to the UN.