100 UK Armed Forces personnel join UN peacekeeping in South Sudan

Up to one hundred additional UK army personnel are set to join UN peacekeeping work in South Sudan. Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has announced that the troops will deploy to South Sudan to boost support to the UN Mission in the country. Specifically, the additional UK personnel will enable the provision of a field hospital, supporting deployed UK and other UN peacekeepers. Fallon commented: “This large scale deployment underlines how we are stepping up our global commitments. “Backed by a rising defence budget, it’s part of our effort to tackle the instability that leads to mass migration and terrorism. It will help keep Britain safe while improving lives abroad.” Currently, the UK’s role in the region involves vital engineering work to strengthen infrastructure, and providing longstanding advisory support to the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) headquarters. Further to the UNMISS contribution, the UK is also backing a UN mission in Somalia to bolster security against the threat of terrorism. Around 40 UK troops have been deployed to support the Africa Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), which is working to build stability and help neutralise the threat posed by Al-Shabaab extremists.