Statement by Ambassador Bhagwant S. Bishnoi, Acting Permanent Representative,  on  Agenda item 147:  Troop Contributing Countries  Rates of reimbursement at the Fifth Committee of the United Nations General Assembly  on May 09, 2014

Mr. Chairman,
 

1.It will not be an overstatement to say that we are at the cross roads of history with respect to peace keeping operations in more than one way, and certainly one among those is the fact that we are today considering the Secretary General’s report on results of the revised survey to establish the standard rate of reimbursement to troop-contributing countries.
 

2. At the outset, while thanking the Under Secretary General, DPKO Ambassador Herve Ladsous and Under Secretary General, DFS Madam Ameera Haq for presenting the Secretary General’s report under the agenda item and Mr. Carlos Ruiz Massieu, Chairman of ACABQ for presenting the committee’s related report, I would like to align myself with the statement made by Bolivia on behalf of G77 and China. I would further like to add our views in our national capacity and here I will be brief.
 

Mr. Chairman,
3. What are the simple and obvious facts on the subject of discussion today?
One, the nature of peace keeping is becoming increasingly complex, dynamic and challenging.
Two, the circumstances under which the peace keepers operate have become more volatile and unpredictable.
Three, the troop contributing countries put at risk the lives of their soldiers in the service of UN which we collectively own, in defending the Charter objective, maintaining international peace and security.
Four, fair, equitable, and adequate reimbursement is an essential element in the set of mutual obligations that bind the Organization to the troop contributors.

Five, the reimbursement rate for the TCCs has largely remained unchanged since early 1970s.

Six, this situation has placed a difficult financial burden on the TCCs jeopardizing the sustainability of participation in peacekeeping operations.
 

4. The General Assembly has acknowledged this fact in setting up a Senior Advisory Group to look into the aspect and subsequently in adopting the recommendations of the SAG report.
 

5. It is only fair and logical for us now, is to consider the current report presented by the Secretary General in fulfilling the obligations under the resolution we adopted last year and to agree on a revised and enhanced rate of reimbursement corresponding to the current realities.
 

6. We feel that we cannot be oblivious to the facts I mentioned above.
Mr. Chairman,
 

7. Having contributed 170,000 troops so far in the peace keeping operations since inception in more than 43 missions, India is fully committed to contributing to the peace keeping operations in maintaining international peace and security.  158 of our soldiers have made supreme sacrifice in defending this cause.
 

8. As a country that was part of the Senior Advisory Group and as a country that took part in the survey for reviewing the rates of reimbursement for troop costs, we commend the Secretariat and Secretary General for the objective, diligent and scientific manner in which the survey has been conducted and for the report which has been presented to us for consideration.
 

9. The methodology of survey as outlined in the SAG report was approved after careful consideration by the GA in its resolution 67/261. Questioning the credibility of the aspects of the methodology and the manner in which it has been conducted will only be detrimental and undermine the utility of the whole exercise of lengthy and intense discussions, which the member states underwent and in their collective wisdom, after thorough discussions, decided to adopt the recommendations of SAG.
 

10. We are completely opposed to any such attempt and we feel that the primary task before us today is only to consider the findings of the survey which are factual and empirical, and to decide on an enhanced rate of reimbursement in consonance with those findings.
 

11. We also welcome the Secretary General’s proposal to establish a dedicated fund to finance the payment of premiums to troop contributing countries for enabling capacities and units operating in circumstances of exceptional risk.
 

12. Mr. Chairman, while considering the SG’s report on troop cost survey results, we cannot but recall and deeply regret the way in which the COE Working Group concluded its work earlier this year. The daily allowances and rest and recuperation allowances paid directly to the troops by the UN have been stagnant for the past twenty and ten years respectively. It may be recalled that the SAG also in its report had rightly pointed out this anomaly and suggested revision of these rates. However, the requests by TCCs for revision of these rates were not agreed to. The Working Group could only agree to a negligible increase in the overall COE rates. Extension of such an approach will clearly be detrimental to the wider peacekeeping partnership and sustainability of peacekeeping operations.
Mr. Chairman,
 

13. Adoption of the resolution 67/261 was a delicate balance of compromise made in good faith. The enormous effort put in by all the stake holders in participating in the survey will also go in vain if we were to discard the scientific and empirical results and base our deliberations on ad-hoc considerations. We therefore look forward to constructive and frank discussions in the committee to bring this laborious and lengthy process to a logical conclusion and would like to underscore our delegation’s readiness to participate in the deliberations with this spirit.
Thank you.