6 August 2007
Squadron Leader Peter Franken loves being a Kiwi and has taken his can-do attitude to somewhere a little different – the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea.
The former Rongotai College pupil left New Zealand this month to start a six-month tour of duty as Assistant Operations Officer for the United Nations Military Armistice Commission (UNCMAC).
New Zealand is one of 16 countries committed to upholding the Korean War Armistice agreement, and Squadron Leader Franken will play his part in the Operations Planning Team by investigating and documenting armistice violations, inspecting fortifications within the DMZ, processing requests to travel through the DMZ and planning future activities and missions under the auspice of the Armistice Agreement.
After 18 years in the Royal New Zealand Air Force, the father of three is excited about the new challenges he will face on this deployment.
“With 16 countries working in UNCMAC, I’m going to be a part of a truly multicultural team in South Korea. I’ll be putting into practice all the skills I’ve learnt during my time in the Air Force, while learning about and experiencing life in another country. I love being a Kiwi, I feel we live a privileged life in New Zealand and I’m looking forward to observing a culture where the outlook is very different to ours.”
The Korean War Armistice Agreement was signed in 1953, and New Zealand has actively participated in the work of UNCMAC since 1998. UNCMAC is responsible for supervising the access and security of the DMZ, a 241kms long and 4km wide “buffer zone” separating the opposing forces of North and South Korea.
The New Zealand Government has recently extended its commitment to UNCMAC in the Republic of Korea for two years to August 2009.
Currently 519 New Zealand Defence Force personnel are deployed on 18 operations, UN missions and defence exercises around the world.