TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The UN is gearing up to observe the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on Friday, June 5, 2026, where it will honor "peacekeepers past and present," including two Indonesian soldiers who lost their lives last year.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres is set to lay a wreath to honor the nearly 4,500 peacekeepers who have lost their lives since 1948. Guterres will also preside over a ceremony at which the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal will be awarded posthumously to 68 military, police, and civilian peacekeepers, including 59 who perished in 2025.
"On this International Day, we honor peacekeepers past and present and reaffirm our shared responsibility to respect and strengthen their work," the UN chief said in a statement received by Tempo on Friday, May 29, 2026.
Guterres called for UN member states to ensure the safety and security of peacekeepers, as well as "steady political backing and reliable financial support.”
"No one should die serving the cause of peace," he reaffirmed.
Among the recipients of this year's posthumous Dag Hammarskjold medal are two Indonesian peacekeepers, who both passed away during service in 2025.
They are Second Corporal Eko Prambudi Santoso, who served with the UN Organization Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO), and Police First Sergeant Sri Widodo who served with the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA).
Meanwhile, this year, Indonesia lost four peacekeepers serving with the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), amid the Israel-Hezbollah conflict. Those who passed away this year will be honoured posthumously with the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal at next year’s ceremony.
UN peacekeepers are deployed 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.
They are tasked with, among others, supporting political solutions, preventing escalation, protecting civilians, monitoring ceasefires, enabling humanitarian assistance, and clearing landmines in conflict regions.
The statement noted that 118 countries contribute uniformed personnel to 11 UN peacekeeping missions, amounting to over 50,000 civilian, military and police peacekeepers serving under the UN flag.
Indonesia is the 6th largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN Peacekeeping, deploying nearly 2,000 military and police personnel, including 156 women. They are stationed to UN peace operations in Abyei, the Central African Republic, Cyprus, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Lebanon, South Sudan and Western Sahara.
First established in 2002, this year's Peacekeepers Day theme is “Invest in Peace,” underscoring the importance of peacekeepers in responding to conflicts while resources continue to shrink.
Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, Jean-Pierre Lacroix, said UN peacekeepers keep "hope alive" amidst rising conflict. "Investing in peacekeeping means investing in stability, prevention and the possibility of peace itself,” said Lacroix.
During this year's ceremony, Guterres will also present awards to the 2025 Military Gender Advocate of the Year, Major Abhilasha Barak of India, who serves in UNIFIL, and to the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year, Stephanie Königs of Germany, who served in UNMISS.
Read: Peacekeeping Missions at Risk Due to Cuts, Tensions: Report
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