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The International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers will be observed around the world on 29 May to pay tribute to all women and men serving in UN peacekeeping, and to honour the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.
The General Assembly established the Day back in 2002 and selected May 29 as it was the day in 1948 whenthe Security Council established the first UN Peacekeeping operation, the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization in the Middle East. At New York Headquarters, this year’s International Day of UN Peacekeepers will be observed on Friday, 5 June 2026.
This year’s theme for the Day is “Invest in Peace.” At a time when UN Peacekeeping operations face reduced resources, the theme underscores that peacekeeping remains one of the most effective tools the international community has to respond to conflict—supporting political solutions, preventing escalation, protecting civilians, monitoring ceasefires, enabling humanitarian assistance, clearing landmines, and more.
In his message, Secretary-General António Guterres said: “On this International Day, we honour peacekeepers past and present and reaffirm our shared responsibility to respect and strengthen their work. We pay tribute to nearly 4,500 peacekeepers who have lost their lives since 1948, including 59 last year. No one should die serving the cause of peace. Attacks on peacekeepers are grave violations of international humanitarian law, and Member States must uphold their obligations to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel at all times.”
He further stated that “in an era of rising tensions, peacekeeping is a proven and cost-effective way to restore stability and hope. But it requires steady political backing – and reliable financial support.”
On 5 June, the Secretary-General will lay a wreath to honour peacekeepers and preside over a ceremony at which the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal will be awarded posthumously to 68 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers, who paid the ultimate price in the line of duty, including 59 who perished last year.
During a special ceremony, the Secretary-General will also award the “Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage” to Sergeant Matias Reyes of Uruguay for his actions in Goma, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo during the height of the crisis in early 2025, and to the late Sergii Prykodko of Ukraine who served as a private contractor in the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and was killed during a mission to extract besieged soldiers in March last year (please see press release: Two Peacekeepers to be Honoured with UN Peacekeeping’s Highest Award).
The Secretary-General will also present awards to the 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year, Major Abhilasha Barak of India, who serves in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), and to the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year, Stephanie Königs of Germany, who served in UNMISS (press release: United Nations Announces 2025 Recipients of Top Military and Police Peacekeeping Awards).
“At a time of rising conflict and shrinking resources, United Nations peacekeepers continue to protect civilians, prevent violence from escalating, and keep hope alive in some of the world’s most difficult environments. Investing in peacekeeping means investing in stability, prevention and the possibility of peace itself,” said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations.
Today, more than 50,000 civilian, military and police peacekeepers serve under the UN flag in some of the world’s most complex environments, where conflicts are increasingly fragmented, protracted, and shaped by emerging threats, including the misuse of digital tools and the spread of harmful information. A total of 118 countries currently contribute uniformed personnel to 11 peacekeeping missions.
Schedule of events at UN Headquarters on 5 June
+ 09:45 a.m.: The Secretary-General will lay a wreath in honour of fallen peacekeepers at the Peacekeepers Memorial Site on the North Lawn. (If there is inclement weather, the ceremony will be held near the Chagall window in the Visitors’ Lobby). While UN Photo and UN TV will cover the ceremony, members of the UN press corps are invited. It will not be webcast live, but will be available on demand shortly afterwards: https://webtv.un.org/en (update closer to date)
+ 10:00 a.m.: The Dag Hammarskjöld Medal, Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage, UN Woman Police Officer of the Year and UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year ceremonies will be held in the ECOSOC Council Chamber and shown live on UN Webcast: https://webtv.un.org
+12:00 p.m.: Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix will be the guest at the noon briefing. It will be webcast live on https://webtv.un.org/en
The International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers will be observed around the world on 29 May to pay tribute to all women and men serving in UN peacekeeping, and to honour the memory of those who have lost their lives in the cause of peace.
The General Assembly established the Day back in 2002 and selected May 29 as it was the day in 1948 whenthe Security Council established the first UN Peacekeeping operation, the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization in the Middle East. At New York Headquarters, this year’s International Day of UN Peacekeepers will be observed on Friday, 5 June 2026.
This year’s theme for the Day is “Invest in Peace.” At a time when UN Peacekeeping operations face reduced resources, the theme underscores that peacekeeping remains one of the most effective tools the international community has to respond to conflict—supporting political solutions, preventing escalation, protecting civilians, monitoring ceasefires, enabling humanitarian assistance, clearing landmines, and more.
In his message, Secretary-General António Guterres said: “On this International Day, we honour peacekeepers past and present and reaffirm our shared responsibility to respect and strengthen their work. We pay tribute to nearly 4,500 peacekeepers who have lost their lives since 1948, including 59 last year. No one should die serving the cause of peace. Attacks on peacekeepers are grave violations of international humanitarian law, and Member States must uphold their obligations to ensure the safety and security of UN personnel at all times.”
He further stated that “in an era of rising tensions, peacekeeping is a proven and cost-effective way to restore stability and hope. But it requires steady political backing – and reliable financial support.”
On 5 June, the Secretary-General will lay a wreath to honour peacekeepers and preside over a ceremony at which the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal will be awarded posthumously to 68 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers, who paid the ultimate price in the line of duty, including 59 who perished last year.
During a special ceremony, the Secretary-General will also award the “Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage” to Sergeant Matias Reyes of Uruguay for his actions in Goma, in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo during the height of the crisis in early 2025, and to the late Sergii Prykodko of Ukraine who served as a private contractor in the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) and was killed during a mission to extract besieged soldiers in March last year (please see press release: Two Peacekeepers to be Honoured with UN Peacekeeping’s Highest Award).
The Secretary-General will also present awards to the 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year, Major Abhilasha Barak of India, who serves in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), and to the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year, Stephanie Königs of Germany, who served in UNMISS (press release: United Nations Announces 2025 Recipients of Top Military and Police Peacekeeping Awards).
“At a time of rising conflict and shrinking resources, United Nations peacekeepers continue to protect civilians, prevent violence from escalating, and keep hope alive in some of the world’s most difficult environments. Investing in peacekeeping means investing in stability, prevention and the possibility of peace itself,” said Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations.
Today, more than 50,000 civilian, military and police peacekeepers serve under the UN flag in some of the world’s most complex environments, where conflicts are increasingly fragmented, protracted, and shaped by emerging threats, including the misuse of digital tools and the spread of harmful information. A total of 118 countries currently contribute uniformed personnel to 11 peacekeeping missions.
Schedule of events at UN Headquarters on 5 June
+ 09:45 a.m.: The Secretary-General will lay a wreath in honour of fallen peacekeepers at the Peacekeepers Memorial Site on the North Lawn. (If there is inclement weather, the ceremony will be held near the Chagall window in the Visitors’ Lobby). While UN Photo and UN TV will cover the ceremony, members of the UN press corps are invited. It will not be webcast live, but will be available on demand shortly afterwards: https://webtv.un.org/en (update closer to date)
+ 10:00 a.m.: The Dag Hammarskjöld Medal, Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage, UN Woman Police Officer of the Year and UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year ceremonies will be held in the ECOSOC Council Chamber and shown live on UN Webcast: https://webtv.un.org
+12:00 p.m.: Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix will be the guest at the noon briefing. It will be webcast live on https://webtv.un.org/en
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It is a long established fact that a reader will be distracted by the readable content of a page when looking at its layout. The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making
The point of using Lorem Ipsum is that it has a more-or-less normal distribution of letters, as opposed to using ‘Content here, content here’, making it look like readable English. Many desktop publishing packages and web page editors now use Lorem Ipsum as their default model text, and a search for ‘lorem ipsum’ will uncover many web sites still in their infancy.
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