The United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Friday announced the appointment of Lieutenant General Shailesh Tinaikar of India as the new Force Commander of the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS).
According to a UN press release, Lieutenant General Tinaikar has over 30 years career serving in different capacities with the Indian Armed Forces after graduating from the Indian Military Academy in 1983.
He has also been awarded the Sena Medal and the Vishisht Seva Medal for Distinguished Service and holds a Master of Philosophy in Defence and Strategic Studies from The University of Madras, India, awarded in December 2014.
Lieutenant General Tinaikar has served in the United Nations Angola Verification Mission III in 1996 and 1997 and later in the United Nations Mission in Sudan from 2008 to 2009.
He succeeds Lieutenant General Frank Kamanzi of Rwanda who completed his assignment on 26 May 2019.