Almost 1,400 Bangladeshi peacekeepers deployed in various UN missions will be sent home by mid-2026 due to severe fund cuts by donor countries, especially the US, which has reduced funding globally since the Trump administration.

Bangladesh's Permanent Mission to the UN in New York, along with other missions, was informed about the matter by the UN Department of Peace Operations.

"The number of Bangladeshi peacekeepers to be affected because of the fund cuts will be close to fourteen hundred," a diplomatic source at the Bangladesh Permanent Mission to the UN told The Daily Star yesterday.

"For Bangladesh, 25 percent of peacekeepers will lose jobs, but this ratio varies slightly. For example, Nepali peacekeepers will face 27 percent and those in Rwanda 31 percent job losses."

According to the Armed Forces Division, Bangladesh, since 1988, has successfully completed 63 peacekeeping missions in around 43 countries. At least two lakh members of the Bangladesh Armed Forces have taken part in these missions.

Bangladesh remains one of the leading troop-contributing countries, with about 6,000 peacekeepers currently deployed in 10 countries. In the last three decades until 2022, 165 Bangladeshi peacekeepers died and 258 were injured in the line of duty.

A foreign ministry official, requesting anonymity, said Bangladesh has urged the UN to maintain a balance among nationalities when cutting personnel. "We also asked the UN to recruit an adequate number of Bangladeshis if the budget is increased."

During the UN General Assembly in September, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres directed all missions to identify expenditure cuts amounting to 15 percent of their annual budgets.

On October 15, UN News reported that a severe funding shortfall is threatening to cripple UN peacekeeping operations worldwide, with the organisation warning it may have to scale back patrols, close field offices, and repatriate thousands of "blue helmets" due to delayed payments from Member States.

Peacekeepers are often referred to as "blue helmets" because of the colour of their headgear.

UN Peacekeeping Chief Jean-Pierre Lacroix described the crisis as "more daunting than ever", saying reductions in personnel will affect every major area of peacekeeping work -- from patrols and protection duties to logistics, air operations, and civilian support functions.

In July, the UNGA approved a $5.38 billion peacekeeping budget for 2025–26, slightly down from $5.6 billion the previous year. However, the budget's implementation depends on actual contributions received.

Peacekeeping accounts for less than half of one percent of global military spending -- estimated at $2.7 trillion in 2024 -- yet remains one of the UN's most visible tools for maintaining international peace and security.

Since 1948, more than two million blue helmets from Member States have served in some of the most hostile environments across the world, helping implement ceasefires and pave the way for political dialogue and peace processes.

Over 4,400 peacekeepers have lost their lives in the quest for lasting peace.