Narrative
Full Description
Project narrative
In May 2014, the Chinese Government agreed to send 850 peacekeepers to support the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS). The Chinese foreign ministry confirmed this in June of the same year. Then, in September 2014, the Chinese Government announced that it would send 700 combat troops (as captured by linked Record ID#41573). These combat troops began arriving in January 2015, joining existing 350 Chinese peacekeeping medical workers and engineers in Juba, South Sudan captured in this project. There were 1,031 Chinese peacekeepers in South Sudan in December 2015, including the battalion.
Staff comments
It is unclear when the 350 Chinese non-combat peacekeepers were committed to be sent; the June 2014 pledge suggests that at least 150 peacekeepers were pledged (as it appears this included the 700 combat troops), which would not cover all 350 Chinese personnel. A conflicting MOFCOM source "中国拟向南苏丹增派维和部队" suggests that 263 engineers and 63 medics may have been pledged. Due to this uncertainty regarding the specific pledge and commitment times of the peacekeepers, AidData has elected to check the commitment year_estimated field.