Second edition held for the first time in Brasilia
On September 15, the Brazilian Navy (MB), through the Naval Peace Operations Center (COpPazNav), concluded the second edition of the International Military Intelligence in Peace Operations Course (UN MPKIO COURSE). The course is aimed at officers from the Brazilian Armed Forces and friendly nations, and is taught entirely in English. It lasts three weeks, two of which are face-to-face and one is distance learning, and aims to teach the tasks carried out by an Intelligence Officer when working in a Peace Operation under the aegis of the UN.
The class was made up of 30 students, 14 from MB, three from the Brazilian Army and four from the Brazilian Air Force, as well as nine officers from Argentina, Lebanon, Mexico, Namibia, Nigeria, Portugal, Senegal and Suriname. The presence of military personnel from America, Africa, Asia and Europe allows the students to share a multinational and culturally diverse environment, similar to what happens in UN Peace Operations, enriching the participants’ experience.
“The intelligence course was created by the UN in 2020. The first classes preparing instructors were conducted by the UN itself in 2021, when COpPazNav participated with an officer. In 2022, when it was finally the Peace Operations Centers’ turn to conduct their own intelligence courses, COpPazNav not only did so, but underwent rigorous evaluation, passing and earning the first formal UN certification for an intelligence course. To date, only two Peace Operations Centers in the world have been certified. We are at the forefront,” explained COpPazNav Chief, Frigate Captain Tarick Turidu da Silva Nunes Taets.