By Gao Yujiao and Liu Fang
ZHENGZHOU, Sept. 9 -- The UN peacekeeping field training exercise, "Shared Destiny-2021", kicked off in Central China's Henan Province on September 6. The stage of specialized training will last from September 7 to 11, covering such subjects as battlefield reconnaissance, security patrol, armed escort, civilian protection, responding to terrorist attacks, construction of temporary bases, battlefield first aid, and epidemic control.
Diversified forces demonstrate achievements of China's peacekeeping standby force building
According to Zhang Yiming, a commanding officer of the exercise, this exercise covers the main forces of peacekeeping operations such as troops from the infantry, quick response, security guards, helicopter, engineering, transportation, and medical services. The exercise unifies the joint peacekeeping exercises and the preparations for peacekeeping operations to test the achievements of China's peacekeeping standby force building in the form of joint exercise and training.
In recent years, the Chinese peacekeeping forces have expanded from a single service to multiple services and arms. And with the peacekeeping capabilities being further improved, their peacekeeping missions have been extended from stopping armed conflicts to building lasting peace.
At present, China has the largest number of UN peacekeeping standby forces and the most complete types of units. There are still 2,241 Chinese peacekeepers performing tasks at the UN headquarters and seven mission areas by now.
Unmanned and intelligent equipment appear in the exercise
Multi-types of unmanned and intelligent equipment played important roles at the exercise venue. In battlefield reconnaissance operations, the EOD search drones used detectors to identify metal unexploded objects. In the construction of temporary bases, the EOD robots used energy-generating destruction devices to detonate suspected explosives. In the armed escort training, the unmanned vehicle with fire support, reconnaissance and attack capabilities conducted reconnaissance and search in dangerous and complicated areas.
"Next, unmanned vehicles for reconnaissance, patrol and support will also appear in the exercise," said Yin Panju, an exercise planning team leader. The extensive use of drones, robots and other equipment in this exercise would help to further explore, expand and standardize the practical application of unmanned and intelligent equipment in peacekeeping operations in the future, and contribute Chinese solutions and Chinese wisdom to the development of peacekeeping operations, he said.
Peacekeeping capabilities are jointly improved through practical cooperation
More than 1,000 peacekeepers from China, Mongolia, Pakistan and Thailand participated in this multilateral international peacekeeping exercise organized by the Chinese military for the first time.
"The multi-country joint operation is one of the characteristics of the exercise. The exercise established a multinational joint command consisting of commanders from participating countries in accordance with the standards of internationalization and professionalization," said Li Xiaoguang, executive director of the exercise. In the next few days, the participants will jointly carry out the training in the fields of force composition, organization and command, and operational procedures based on their tasks and functions, he added.