August 12, 2014 - Cyprus Mail
First ever woman to head UN peacekeeping force
First ever woman to head UN peacekeeping force Major General Kristin Lund of Norway, UNFICYP's new commander picture with UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon
UNFICYP, the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus, is now officially run by Norwegian Major General Kristin Lund, the first ever woman commander of a UN peacekeeping operation.
Lund officially assumed her duties at a brief ceremony held in the United Nations buffer zone in Nicosia.
She succeeds Major General Chao Liu of China who served as UNFICYP Force Commander from February 2011 to August 2014.
At a ceremony to welcome the new commander, the UN Secretary General`s Special Representative in Cyprus Lisa Buttenheim “thanked Major General Liu for his three and a half years of service with UNFICYP and paid tribute to his dedication, professionalism and leadership which greatly contributed to United Nations efforts on the island”.
As a brigadier general, Lund served as deputy commander of the Norwegian Army Forces Command from 2007 to 2009.
In 2009, she became the first Norwegian female officer promoted to the rank of major general, and was appointed Chief of Staff of the Norwegian Home Guard.
In 2014, she was appointed to the Norwegian Defence Staff as the Assistant Chief of Staff for Veteran Affairs.
Her previous experience with the UN includes service with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the United Nations Protection Force (UNPROFOR) in Bosnia.
Born in 1958, she graduated from the Norwegian Defence Command and Staff College, the Norwegian Defence University College and holds a Strategic Studies masters degree from the United States Army War College.