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A total of 180 officers from frontier forces across China are currently undergoing training for China’s first standing peacekeeping force in UN history. After passing a UN assessment, the squad is expected to be activated in October, ready to be charged with dangerous, challenging peacekeeping missions.

As one of the major initiatives announced by President Xi Jinping at the summits marking the 70th anniversary of the UN last September, the squad is a demonstration of the Chinese government’s commitment to world peace, according to Vice Public Security Minister Meng Hongwei. Meng emphasized this point on Monday, Aug. 17 when he visited squad at the site of their training, as well as at the first seminar focusing on the peacekeeping ability of senior foreign officers.

Meng said that rapid deployment and excellent coping mechanisms are crucial to the success of the force. High standards and unconventional training will employed to prepare the force for a wide variety of situations.

While interacting with seminar guests, the vice minister encouraged all the participants to exchange peacekeeping experiences, especially between Chinese and African police departments. Seventeen senior police officers from Angola, Djibouti, Kenya and six other African countries joined the seminar.