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STORY: UN / UNTSO GAUCHAT INTERVIEW
TRT: 04:22
SOURCE: UN NEWS
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: ENGLISH / NATS
DATELINE: 26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY / FILE
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
1. Wide shot, flags in front of UN Headquarters
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
2. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“Whenever ceasefires change - because of new war or a new agreement - then we adapt. We can change line of observation, system of observation, and adapt to what the parties have signed to help them to abide by a new text and new rules.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
3. Close up, United Nations flag
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
4. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“The last two years and a half, we had had major changes in Middle East. We had to adapt our system first about the effect of our observation. We were not able to observe, report, and investigate on isolated incidents or violations, and then liaise with the party to try to iron that and not having that reproducing in the future. But because of the hundreds of violations per day, we had to create by our presence, more of an effect of restraint by the parties. Somebody is watching you.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
5. Close up, United Nations flag
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“The military observers in the Middle East are covered when it comes to the operation by UNTSO and wherever you have a force that is needed for producing other impacts of peacekeeping, then we work together. Basically, military observer can observe, report, patrol, inspect, verify, investigate, and liaise. But we cannot do what the force are doing, meaning security, cordon, extraction, show force, engineering work, medical system, and other demining or decontamination when it comes to unexploded ordnance.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
7. Close up, United Nations flag
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“The decision of ceasing the activity of UNIFIL at the end of 2026 provoked a need of assessment, what is the situation, what is needed, and of course we have a set of activity from the HQ to analyse what UN can propose as Secretariat to the Security Council. And of course, in that study, you have a UN mission called UNTSO, my mission, that can produce some effect. And I mentioned those observations, reporting, and investigation, and liaison with the party. This is typically something about ceasefire lines, which is one of the specialties of UNTSO in the entire Middle East.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
9. Close up, United Nations flag
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
10. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“When you have not enough money to have logistic or sustainment about your equipment, vehicle fleet, then you have to find another solution. We have a setting of drawdown of some forces, not only we mentioned UNIFIL, but other missions in the last two years, where UNTSO was able to discuss and obtain elements to complete the fleet, to complete material that we are not able to buy anymore on a normal budget.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
11. Close up, United Nations flag
26 FEBRUARY 2026, NEW YORK CITY
12. SOUNDBITE (English) Major General Patrick Gauchat, Head of Mission and Chief of Staff, United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO):
“If I see my mission as a light, flexible, a lot of interesting level of reporting, there is a prospect in the future to use more this tool of military observer. There is also a real testimony from the Member States that we work in the Middle East that do not challenge our reporting because they found that we have this level of impartiality and precision in the reporting that suits their needs.”
FILE - NEW YORK CITY
13. Wide shot, United Nations flag in front of UN Headquarters
The United Nations Truce Supervision Organization (UNTSO) Chief, on Thursday (26 Feb) told UN NEWS that in last two-and-a-half years, UNTSO had to adapt to “major changes” in the Middle East, and said, “because of the hundreds of violations per day, we had to create by our presence, more of an effect of restraint by the parties. Somebody is watching you.”
Major General Patrick Gauchat, who spoke just days before leaving his post, said UNTSO, the first UN peacekeeping mission, has undergone continuous development over the past decades.
He said, “whenever ceasefires change - because of new war or a new agreement - then we adapt. We can change line of observation, system of observation, and adapt to what the parties have signed to help them to abide by a new text and new rules.”
The Head of Mission said military observers in the Middle East and peacekeeping forces “work together,” as military observers “can observe, report, patrol, inspect, verify, investigate, and liaise,” but “cannot do what the force are doing, meaning security, cordon, extraction, show force, engineering work, medical system, and other demining or decontamination when it comes to unexploded ordnance.”
He spoke about coordination with UN peacekeepers in the region, including the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the United Nations Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF).
Gauchat said the decision to cease the activities of UNIFIL at the end of the year, “provoked a need of assessment” of the situation in order for the Secretariat to advice the Security Council, particularly on ceasefire lines, “which is one of the specialties of UNTSO in the entire Middle East.”
Asked about the constraints of operating under a reduced budget, he said, “When you have not enough money to have logistic or sustainment about your equipment, vehicle fleet, then you have to find another solution. We have a setting of drawdown of some forces, not only we mentioned UNIFIL, but other missions in the last two years, where UNTSO was able to discuss and obtain elements to complete the fleet, to complete material that we are not able to buy anymore on a normal budget.”
To conclude, Gauchat said, “if I see my mission as a light, flexible, a lot of interesting level of reporting, there is a prospect in the future to use more this tool of military observer. There is also a real testimony from the Member States that we work in the Middle East that do not challenge our reporting because they found that we have this level of impartiality and precision in the reporting that suits their needs.”
UNTSO was established in May 1948, becoming the first peacekeeping operation ever created by the United Nations.
Since then, UNTSO military observers have been deployed in the Middle East to monitor ceasefire agreements, oversee truce agreements, prevent the escalation of isolated incidents, and assist other UN peacekeeping operations in the region in fulfilling their mandates.
