6 June 2022 | UNDSS Comms
Since the first day of the war in Ukraine, the United Nations has undertaken a vast emergency operation to alleviate human suffering and help deliver humanitarian assistance as effectively as possible. UNDSS has been an integral part of this collective effort, providing critical security support to a range of UN programs and partners involved in the response. Brave staff in service to humanity like Mr. Alexandru Voivodeanu, have been called upon to assist; in Alexandru¡¯s case, all the way from his post in Libya. ¡°When the call for volunteers came, I had to prepare and deploy within a very short time,¡± recalls Alexandru. ¡°It was going to be a mission like no other given the intensity, fluidity, and large-scale nature. There was no benchmark for such a response. Our task as UNDSS was to oversee the safety and security of all the UN humanitarian support operations in areas affected by the war in Ukraine especially the Eastern and Southern parts of the country,¡± he adds.
The intensity of the conflict, its many battlegrounds, and Ukraine¡¯s vast size have required very tight coordination, notably between UNDSS and other UN agencies, including the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC). ¡°Co-planning and co-implementation of civilian evacuation missions was essential,¡± remarks Alexandru. Effective coordination has enabled timely convoy movements and the prepositioning of assets and transportation of civilians.
UNDSS¡¯ role came into sharp focus as part of the team that enabled the civilian evacuation from the Azovstal steelworks plant during the battle for Mariupol . This mission was initiated in the wake of the UN Secretary-General's meeting with the Russian President and the two parties reached an agreement allowing for the UN to be involved in evacuating civilians from the steelworks plant. ¡°This was one of the few missions that you could not plan 100 percent in advance. We learned on the move and made necessary adjustments based on our security risk management tools,¡± recalls Alexandru. "The humanitarian team of four included one colleague from OCHA, two from ICRC, and Alexandru from UNDSS, all of whom provided indispensable security support. The hardest part was making sure that everyone who went for the mission came back safely,¡± he notes.
Hundreds of civilians and soldiers had been trapped inside the plant with food, water, and medical supplies dwindling every day. ¡°All that I had learned in different training handbooks about risk and threats was present in the setup. All we had to do was exercise patience, patience, and more patience. We had to endure long hours of waiting, with each day presenting a different situation. We were sleep-deprived, and had to survive on a few snacks,¡± he recalls. There were three phases to the steelwork evacuation plan. The first involved the civilian evacuation, while the second entailed help to civilians who specifically wished to cross the front lines into mainland Ukraine. This stage was led by UNDSS and OCHA. The third phase was a final evacuation operation for the civilians who remained inside. Thanks to these efforts, over 170 civilians were safely evacuated from the steelworks.
¡°I have been to different surge missions around the world, but this one is a new front altogether. My colleagues have demonstrated endurance, professionalism, and patience in the operation. And seeing cries turn into smiles after evacuation kept our spirits up.¡± Alexandru concludes.
Despite facing great security obstacles and working in an active fighting zone, the UNDSS team contributed considerably to the overall success of the UN Secretary-General's initiative to assist this civilian evacuation. Given the significance of this one-of-a-kind UN mission and the intricacies of its security, the entire team showed tremendous passion, commitment, and bravery demonstrating the true nature of UNDSS¡¯ role as an enabler of UN programmes. Everyone involved in this challenging mission deserves our highest appreciation.