§ 35. Mr. CohenTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what proposals he has made to the UN about improving its defence capability in cases where UN deployments(a) involve and (b) do not involve British troops. [133019]
§ Mr. HoonThe UK worked closely with the UN Secretary-General's expert panel during the preparation of the recently published Brahimi Report on reforming UN Peace Operations. Key proposals in the Report aimed at strengthening the UN's defence capability include enhancing early warning mechanisms and information analysis; creating integrated teams for the planning and execution of peacekeeping missions; and improving deployment times and the training and equipping of troops. The Report recommends many of the reforms for which we have argued for some years. They will be of vital importance for all UN deployments including those involving British troops. We are pressing the UN for their speedy implementation.