Speeches

Lord Judd – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Ministry of Defence

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Judd on 2016-05-24.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what are the tasks and role of UK military personnel committed to service at the headquarters of the UN.

Earl Howe

The UK currently has four military personnel at the United Nations (UN) headquarters in New York:

The Deputy Military Advisor to the UN Secretary General and Deputy Head of the Office of Military Affairs (OMA).

A Special Assistant/Military Assistant to the Military Advisor to the UN Secretary General and Head of the OMA.

A Military Planner within the Military Planning Service of the OMA.

A Gender Advisor seconded to the OMA.

These officers support the UN by: providing strategic and operational military advice on the efficiency and the effectiveness of military components in UN Peacekeeping missions; conducting research and contributing to the development of policy; maintaining close links to national Permanent Missions to the UN; and liaising with non-governmental organisations. The Gender Advisor also ensures implementation of Security Council resolutions on Women, Peace and Security (WPS), providing advice on recruitment and force generation, and support to military gender advisors at Field Headquarters. WPS and the Prevention of Sexual Violence in Conflict Initiative are HMG priorities, and the Gender Advisor is uniquely placed to influence the UN’s work on these issues.