The United Nations on Friday paid tribute to the nearly 4,500 peacekeepers who lost their lives in the line of duty over the past 78 years when marking the International Day of UN Peacekeepers, which falls annually on May 29.
"Across the globe, the UN Blue Helmet is a symbol of hope for communities in their darkest hour," UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said in remarks at the ceremonies to present the Dag Hammarskjöld Medal, the Captain Mbaye Diagne Medal for Exceptional Courage, and the UN Woman Police Officer of the Year and UN Military Gender Advocate of the Year awards, after laying a wreath at the Peacekeepers Memorial on the North Lawn of the UN headquarters in New York.
Underscoring that UN peacekeeping has proven to be one of the international community's most effective responses to conflict, Guterres said the peacekeepers "are curbing violence, enabling political solutions, supporting elections, delivering humanitarian assistance, clearing landmines, and so much more."
According to the United Nations, currently more than 51,000 civilians, military and police personnel are employed across the globe in 11 UN peacekeeping missions, and over the 78 years since the United Nations began its peacekeeping work, more than 2 million peacekeepers have served in 71 peacekeeping missions on four continents.
The UN General Assembly adopted a resolution in 2003 to designate May 29 as the International Day of UN Peacekeepers.
UN honors fallen peacekeepers
UN honors fallen peacekeepers
China's advances in the low-altitude economy became manifest as its first domestically developed engine specifically for electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft rolled off the production line.
The AEE25 aviation electric engine, developed by the AECC (Aero Engine Corporation of China) Aeroengine Control System Institute, was delivered in Wuxi City, east China's Jiangsu Province, on Friday, setting a national record for torque density, meaning a lighter engine that allows the aircraft to carry more passengers or cargo.
The achievement marks a major breakthrough in key aviation electric propulsion technologies, with the engine's performance reaching internationally advanced levels.
The AEE25 converts electrical energy from onboard batteries into lift and thrust for rotor systems. The engine has achieved a torque density of 40 newton-meters per kilogram, the highest among China's publicly disclosed 200-kW-class aviation electric engines.
The engine integrates six core components -- a main motor and its controller, a cooling system motor and its controller, and a variable-pitch actuator and its controller -- into one.
"This is a highly integrated product. For aircraft manufacturers, it can start to work after being installed with the propeller and connected to power and the bus, thus simplifying the aircraft design process. In addition, the engine is designed to be safe enough, with all motors designed in duplicate, and all controllers having two channels. In the event of any single-point failure, the power output can be guaranteed," said Liu Guoping, deputy director of the AECC institute.
The AEE25 will be installed on the E20 eVTOL aircraft developed by Shanghai TCab Technology Co., Ltd (TCab Tech). The engine has also entered the airworthiness certification process alongside the aircraft program.
China's first homegrown eVTOL engine rolls off production line
