BEIJING, Sept. 30 (UPI) -- Chinese riot police are training outside Beijing ahead of leaving for Haiti in early October as part of a U.N. peacekeeping mission.
Beijing is sending a total of 125 riot police, with the mission of training Haitian police and helping to restore order in the flood-ravaged country, Xinhua reported Thursday.
An advance team of 30 officers has been in Port-au-Prince since Sept. 18, staying in an abandoned warehouse while they set up camp near the airport in advance of the arrival of the rest of the force, the South China Morning Post reported.
This is China's first contribution to a U.N. peacekeeping mission in the Western hemisphere. China has sometimes been accused of contributing less than its share to international missions, especially as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council.
Haiti is one of some 20 countries that maintain diplomatic relations with Taiwan rather than China. Beijing may hope to pave the way for a reversal of that position by sending its peacekeepers to the island in time of need.
