Good morning, Your Excellences, Major General Akwa, Brigadier General San Clemente, Distinguished Ladies and Gentlemen, All others protocols observed.
Chargé d’Affaires Melinda Tabler-Stone expressed gratitude to the Kofi Annan International Peacekeeping Training Centre and the Africa Center for Strategic Studies for their invitation to speak at the Peace Operations and Security Challenges in West Africa Workshop. She commended their dedication and leadership in training over 11,000 military, police, and civilian personnel.
Tabler-Stone emphasized the United States' longstanding support for peacekeeping missions in West Africa and its commitment to collaborating with partners in Ghana. Ghana's contribution of more than 3,000 police, military observers, and troops to UN peacekeeping operations was highlighted as a significant effort.
She noted that the workshop would advance peace and security efforts by countering violent extremism, building national capacities for long-term security, combating terrorism through governance and rule of law, preventing transnational crime, and ensuring adequate resources for UN peacekeeping.
The workshop aims to build on the 2015 Western Accord trainings and support Africa Command’s peacekeeping programs across West Africa. It serves as a crucial component of ongoing military-to-military exercises.
Tabler-Stone took pride in the United States' track record in the region. In 2005, a Peace and Security Adviser was established at the African Union headquarters to provide immediate advisory support from U.S. Armed Forces. Since 2009, over 250,000 African troops and police from 25 nations have been trained for peacekeeping missions.
The African Peacekeeping Rapid Response Partnership was developed during the 2014 United States-Africa Leader’s Summit to enhance African militaries' capacity for rapid deployment. The U.S., with Ghana as a partner, pledged $110 million annually for three to five years toward this initiative. Between 2008 and 2015, more than $4 billion in military aid was provided by the U.S., which remains the largest contributor to UN peacekeeping missions.
Tabler-Stone acknowledged Ghana's integrity as a democratic nation and expressed hope that mutual efforts would benefit both Ghana and other nations. The workshop gathered veterans, future peacekeepers, trainers, security experts, international partners, and American officials to analyze conflict resolution strategies amidst changing security conditions.
"This workshop brings together African peacekeeping veterans... You represent collective security and international solidarity in action," Tabler-Stone stated.