UN Delegation Arrives to Inspect Mali-Bound COE

A UN delegation from New York and Mali already in the island to carry out assessment and inspection on Mali-bound Contingent Owned Equipment (COE), paid a courtesy call on the Commander of the Army, Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake this afternoon (1) at the Army Headquarters.

The UN delegation included Lieutenant Colonel Carlos Vaz, (Leader of the Delegation), Lieutenant Colonel Donglin Duanmu, Major Carlos Rockshead, Ms Brenda Ammeraal, Mr Jorge Soares and Mr Peter Donaldson. Major General Piyal Wickremaratne, Director General General Staff was also associated during the meet with the Commander of the Army.

During the brief meeting at the Army Headquarters, Lieutenant General Senanayake explained how the Sri Lanka Army has been contributing to the United Nations Department of Peacekeeping Operations (UNDPKO) in the past few years with special focus on the preparations that were made in relation to scheduled assignments in Mali.

Meanwhile, Mr Juan Fernandez, Senior Human Rights Advisor in the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) also had a separate courtesy call on the Commander of the Army, Lieutenant General Mahesh Senanayake around the same time on Tuesday (1) at the Army Headquarters.