The United Nations will observe the International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers on June 5 with a ceremony at its New York headquarters, honouring personnel who died while serving in missions worldwide.

UN Secretary-General António Guterres will lay a wreath in tribute to fallen peacekeepers and preside over the annual ceremony, where the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal will be awarded posthumously to 68 military, police and civilian personnel. Of them, 59 died last year while serving in UN missions.

Two peacekeepers from Nepal will be honoured posthumously. Corporal Suraj Lamichhane died while serving in the Central African Republic in 2025, and Private Debi Ram Jaisi died while serving in East Timor in 2000.

More than 50,000 civilian, military and police personnel currently serve under the UN flag across 11 peacekeeping missions. A total of 118 countries contribute uniformed personnel.

Nepal remains the largest contributor of uniformed personnel to UN peacekeeping, currently deploying more than 4,300 military and police personnel, including 364 women, across missions in Abyei, Central African Republic, Cyprus, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kosovo, Lebanon, Libya, the Middle East, Somalia, South Sudan and Western Sahara.

This year’s theme, “Invest in Peace,” comes as UN peacekeeping operations face reduced resources. The UN says peacekeeping remains one of the most effective tools for supporting political solutions, protecting civilians, monitoring ceasefires and enabling humanitarian access.

In his message, Guterres said nearly 4,500 peacekeepers have died since 1948, including 59 last year, and stressed that attacks on peacekeepers violate international humanitarian law.

He said peacekeeping is a “proven and cost-effective way” to restore stability but requires political backing and reliable funding.

During the ceremony, the Secretary-General will also present the Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage to Corporal Matias Reyes of Uruguay for actions during the 2025 crisis in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, and to the late Sergii Prykodko of Ukraine, who died during a mission in South Sudan.

Awards will also be presented to Major Abhilasha Barak of India, named Military Gender Advocate of the Year for service in the UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), and to Stephanie Königs of Germany, named UN Woman Police Officer of the Year for service in the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).

Jean-Pierre Lacroix, Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations, said peacekeepers continue to protect civilians and prevent escalation of violence despite rising conflict and shrinking resources, adding that investing in peacekeeping means investing in stability and prevention.