Major General Kristin Lund (born 16 May 1958) is a retired senior officer of the Norwegian Army. She was the first woman to command a United Nations peacekeeping operation, serving as Force Commander for the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus from 2014 to 2016 and later as Head of Mission/Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization from 2017 to 2019.
Kristin Lund | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 16 May 1958 Norway |
| Allegiance | Norway |
| Service | Norwegian Army |
| Years of service | 1979–2019 |
| Rank | Major General |
| Commands | United Nations Truce Supervision Organization United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus Norwegian Home Guard |
| Battles / wars | Gulf War War in Afghanistan |
| Awards | Commander of the Royal Norwegian Order of Saint Olav Defence Service Medal with Laurel Branch |
Military career
editLund joined the Norwegian Army in 1979 and, in 1984, entered the Norwegian Military Academy for officer training.[1] She served with the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon in 1986, deployed to Saudi Arabia in support of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, was posted to the United Nations Protection Force in the Balkans from 1992 to 1993 and again from 1994 to 1995, and served as part of the headquarters of the International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan from 2003 to 2004.[1][2]
Lund attended the United States Army War College in 2006, graduating with a master's degree in strategic studies. She is also a graduate of the Norwegian Defense Command and Staff College and the Norwegian Defense University College.[1] In 2007, Lund was appointed deputy commander of the Norwegian Army Forces Command. Two years later, in 2009, she became the first woman to be promoted to major general in the Norwegian Army and was appointed chief of the Norwegian Home Guard.[1][2]
In 2014 Lund was appointed Head of Veteran Affairs for the Norwegian Defence Staff.[3] On 12 May that year, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Lund's appointment as Force Commander of the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus (UNFICYP). She succeeded China's Major General Chao Liu in the role on 13 August, and in doing so became the first woman to command a United Nations operation.[3][4] After two years in Cyprus, Lund returned to Norway in July 2016 and was appointed an adviser at the Norwegian Defence University College in Oslo. She was again appointed to a United Nations command in October 2017, as Head of Mission/Chief of Staff of the United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) based in Jerusalem.[2] Lund was the first woman to lead UNTSO, which had been formed in 1948 to monitor the ceasefire between Israel and Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria.[5] Lund's tour ended in October 2019 and she retired from the Norwegian Army shortly after.[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e "Major General Kristin Lund Joins PRIO as Practitioner in Residence". PIRO. 3 January 2020. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
- ^ a b c "Secretary-General Appoints Major General Kristin Lund of Norway Head of United Nations Truce Supervision Organization". Press release. United Nations. 6 October 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
- ^ a b "Secretary-General Appoints Major General Kristin Lund of Norway Commander of United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Cyprus". Press release. United Nations. 12 May 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
- ^ "UN Appoints First Female Commander of Peacekeeping Force". Guardian. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2021.
- ^ "Major General Kristin Lund: Peacekeeping". Georgetown Institute for Women, Peace and Security. 31 July 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2021.