MONTEVIDEO, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Nigel Fisher, head of the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH), confirmed here Thursday that the blue helmet contingent in the Caribbean country will be reduced by half by 2017 on condition that a national police is established.
To achieve this objective, other goals, such as the establishment of the National Police with at least 15,000 effectives, have to be fulfilled, Fisher told a press conference.
"There is a waybill agreed with the Haitian government to advance in the consolidation of a National Police" and to support "the development of institutions," said Fisher, who is visiting Uruguay, Brazil, Chile and Argentina.
MINUSTAH has around 6,200 effectives, of which one sixth are Uruguayans.
Fisher praised the active participation of the Latin American countries in the mission, the "commitment" of Uruguayan peace keepers and the support they have offered for the development of Haitian local communities.
"South-South solidarity is very important," said Fisher.
MINUSTAH was established on June 1, 2004, under UN Security Council Resolution 1542, to restore a secure and stable environment and strengthen Haiti's government institutions and rule-of-law structure, among others.
A devastating earthquake in 2010 killed tens of thousands of people and paralyzed government institutions in Haiti.
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