China sends peacekeeping infantry to South Sudan

A U.N. peacekeeping force made up of 130 Chinese soldiers flew to South Sudan from Jinan, Shandong Province on Tuesday, April 7 in the Chinese government's latest participation in U.N. peacekeeping missions worldwide.

A PLA infantry battalion assembles at Jinan Yaoqiang International Airport before flying on a U.N.-chartered flight to South Sudan for a U.N. peacekeeping mission on Tuesday, April 7, 2015. [Photo by Chen Boyuan / China.org.cn]

The Chinese soldiers on the U.N.-chartered flight were the last batch of the 700-person team to be deployed in South Sudan. The team was sent to the region in response to the U.N.'s July 2014 request for a peacekeeping force in the newest African nation. This group is also China's first-ever group of Blue Helmets selected from the battle array, since China's previous participation in U.N. peacekeeping missions was limited to engineering, logistics, medical services, and escorting tasks.

The PLA peacekeeping battalion includes 43 veteran soldiers who have been on previous such missions elsewhere and 13 female soldiers who are expected to play a vital role in protecting and attending to the needs of women and children at their posting in South Sudan.

The battalion will oversee three infantry companies and one backup company. Soldiers will be equipped with pistols, rifles, wheel-armored transport vehicles and command vehicles, in addition to self-sustaining facilities such as electricity generators, communication centers and riot-prevention devices, according to the PLA Jinan Military Region, the parent unit of the battalion.

At a farewell ceremony hosted at Jinan Yaoqiang International Airport, the team's head, Lieutenant Colonel Yang Zhao, Vice Commander of the Infantry Battalion, said the service team would be stationed in South Sudan for around eight months, but added that its term of service is "completely subject to the requirements of PLA and U.N. authorities."

This year marks the 25th anniversary of China's first participation in U.N. peacekeeping missions. So far, a total of 30,178 PLA soldiers have participated in 24 U.N. peacekeeping missions, including 10 who lost their lives in service. China currently maintains 2,720 soldiers in the nine task zones set by the United Nations: 2,637 are tasked with support services and 83 are military observers monitoring ceasefires in both the Middle East and Africa, according to Li Xiuhua, vice director of Peacekeeping Affairs at China’s Ministry of Defense.

Chinese soldiers are very proud of the record of "zero discipline violations" and "zero repatriations" that they have maintained throughout 25 years of participation in U.N. peacekeeping missions.

The number of Chinese Blue Helmet soldiers in active service will rise to 3,100 by the end of this year, making China the largest contributor of U.N. peacekeepers among the five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council.