BEIJING - An 18-man team of Chinese police officers departed from Beijing on Thursday at midnight to join the United Nations Peacekeeping Force in Liberia, the Ministry of Public Security said.

It is the 11th peacekeeping police team China has sent to the African nation since 2000.

The 18 police officers, all from the northeastern province of Liaoning, have been trained in international law, English and skills related to first aid, driving and shooting, the Ministry of Public Security said.

Their predecessors, the 10th peacekeeping police team in Liberia composed of police officers from the central province of Hunan, will return to China on July 28 after their one-year mission is complete.

Since January 2000, China has sent 1,771 police officers on eight peacekeeping missions in East Timor, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Liberia, Afghanistan, Sudan, Haiti and South Sudan.

China's peacekeepers have accomplished the tasks mandated by the United Nations and won recognition from the international community, the ministry said.