UN Assessment & Advisory Visit Team Speaks to IPSOTSL-Trained Officers

The United Nations Assessment and Advisory Visit (AAV) team, now in Sri Lanka for assessing more possibilities of Sri Lankan forces, involved in UN Peace assignments in future in Mali called at the Institute of Peace Support Operations Training Sri Lanka (IPSOTSL) in Kukuleganga on Friday (24).

After a warm welcome, extended by the IPSOTSL Commandant, Brigadier Chinthaka Rajapaksa, a detailed overview of the IPSOTSL and its role was presented before the visiting UN representatives.

The day’s proceedings at IPSOTSL were chaired by Major General Asanga Perera, Director General, Directorate of Overseas Operations. The UN delegation consisted of Mr. James Victor De Rcole, (Strategic Force Generation and Capability Planning Cell in the United Nations Headquarters in New York), Colonel Lawrence Kapina, (Deputy Chief U7 Training and Evaluation in the MINUSMA), Lieutenant Colonel Rajeev (Force Generation Service of the United Nations Headquarters in New York), Mr. Mark Flood (Regional Area Coordinator - United Nations Mine Action Service in the MINUSMA and Mr. Satvinder Singh Paul, Chief Contingent Own Equipment in the MINUSMA.

The special presentation and relevant demonstrations, formulated at the IPSOTSL with the intent of showcasing the Operational Readiness, Combat Engineering and Medical Capabilities of Sri Lanka Combat Convoy Company were staged with the participation of Officers who have successfully completed the Sri Lanka Combat Convoy Company No 3 training module at the IPSOTSL.

The guidance and support of the former Contingent Commander, Colonel Dinesh Bulathsinhala and other senior officers made the presentations more easier.

The UN team with the expectation of ensuring the quality and standards of the contingent's pre-deployment training at IPSOTSL and evaluating the Operational Readiness of the additional 'Combat Convoy Company B-1’ (CCC) contingent, which is designed for the deployment shortly in the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission (MINUSMA) closely interacted with those trained IPSOTSL Officers at Kukuleganga. Earlier, they visited the Embilipitiya Military School of Engineering and the SLME workshop at Uda Walawe.

The aim of this AAV is to inspect the Combat Convoy Company's readiness and standards of the training of the contingent and verify its conditions to meet the mission's Force Requirement as stipulated in the United Nations Department of Peace Operations (UNDPO).