On 7 September, MINURSO celebrated the National Day of Brazil by raising the country’s national flag at the Mission HQ in Laayoune. This day marks Brazil's declaration of independence from Portugal in 1822.

Since the first Brazilian peacekeepers have been deployed to the United Nations Emergency Force (Suez Canal) in 1956, Brazil has sent nearly 58,000 personnel to UN-led missions. The country’s engagement gained a new dimension in 2004 when the country deployed its first large contingent of blue helmets to the UN Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) and assumed the lead of its military component.

Today, Brazil provides the Force Commander to the UN Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), Lieutenant General Otávio Rodrigues De Miranda Filho, and participates in peace operations worldwide, including MINURSO,  where nine Brazilian military observers serve at the Mission HQ in Laayoune as well as in Team Sites.

On Brazil’s flag, the green color represents the rainforest, the yellow rectangle in the middle symbolizes the mineral resources especially gold, the dark blue color represents the sky, and the stars stand for the federal states.

Feliz Dia Nacional!