During 16 - 26 February 2016, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and the Permanent Mission of Thailand to the United Nations in New York jointly organised “Thailand’s Contributions to UN Peacekeeping and Peace-Related Operations” exhibition at the UN Headquarters in New York. This exhibition was a great success and received much praise from United Nations officials and representatives of Permanent Missions.

Apart from showcasing Thailand as a longstanding, dedicated and active UN member state and major contributor to UN peacekeeping operations, the exhibition also placed Thailand’s emphasis on the connection between peacekeeping, peace building, and sustainable development around the world such as the operations in the Korean War, East Timor/Timor-Leste, Darfur, Sudan to counter-piracy operations in the Gulf of Aden, Somalia, especially in development assistance and in bolstering women’s participation in peacekeeping operations.

The event sparked much discussion on the future of peacekeeping amid the on-going deliberations on the Report of the High-level Independent Panel on Peace Operations (HIPPO) and the Prime Minister of Thailand’s pledge at the Leaders’ Summit on Peacekeeping 2015 during the 70^th Session of the UN General Assembly on 28 September 2015 in New York to contribute more Thai peacekeepers with a focus on development work.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand and the Permanent Mission of Thailand to the United Nations in New York also organised a Panel Discussion on “More than Mission Mandate: Towards Sustainable Peace” which discussed the unique contributions of Thai peacekeepers as well as the future of UN peacekeeping operations with three distinguished panelists : H.E. José Ramos-Horta, former President of Timor-Leste and Chair of HIPPO, General Boonsrang Niumpradit (Ret.) of Thailand, former UNTAET (East Timor) Force Commander, and Mr. Hervé Ladsous, Under-Secretary-General for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.

The panel discussion shared with approximately 100 participants Thailand’s concept of ‘more than mission mandate’ as a commitment to carry out peacekeeping responsibilities not only with knowledge and expertise, but also with sympathy and empathy. General Boonsrang and H.E. Ramos-Horta shared their experiences of putting this concept of winning hearts and minds into practice during UNTAET. Beyond securing Timor-Leste for its transition towards independence, the Thai contingent also contributed to post-conflict reconstruction through rural development programs, thereby building trust and gaining legitimacy for UN peacekeeping. Mr. Ladsous reiterated, as outlined in HIPPO report, that in going forward, a multidimensional, people-centered peacekeeping mission is needed with an emphasis on negotiated political settlement and enhanced integration with the peace-building agenda.