Ukraine will repatriate troops and equipment, including helicopters, involved in U.N. peacekeeping missions in Africa and Europe to bolster defences at home in the face of Russia’s invasion, a U.N. official said.
Russian troops invaded Ukraine nearly two weeks ago, shelling, bombing and besieging its cities and towns and forcing more than 2 million people, mostly women and children, to flee.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy signed a decree on Tuesday recalling all peacekeeping forces in order to assist in the war effort at home, Ukrainian media reported.
Ukraine contributes about 300 troops, police officers and staff to six U.N. missions, a number unlikely to drastically alter peacekeeping operations globally.
Its biggest contribution by far, to the mission in Democratic Republic of Congo known as MONUSCO, comprises eight Ukrainian helicopters and a 250-member aviation unit, a MONUSCO spokesman said.
Read more: Reuters
