afrol News, 13 February - The parliament of Uganda has approved government plans to deploy 1,500 peacekeepers in Somalia as part of an African Union (AU) peacebuilding mission. The Ugandan troops are the first approved one to replace Ethiopian troops, which are already departing from Somalia.

The AU has pledged to send a forceful military mission to Somalia to replace the Ethiopian troops that fought the Islamist movement in Somalia, but have started departing from the country. While Ghana, Burundi, Malawi and Nigeria have indicated they will send troops, it has so far been Uganda that has been most persistent in its call to assist its allied Ethiopians and the transitional government of Somalia.

President Yoweri Museveni was the first to promise troops from his country to be sent to Somalia to build and keep a peace in the war-torn country. But he made an Ugandan troop deployment dependent on an official AU request and approval from the Kampala parliament - two requirements that have now been fulfilled.

President Museveni earlier had indicated Uganda could send up to 1,500 troops as part of an AU peacebuilding mission. The AU has pledged to send around 8,000 troops to Somalia to use this historic chance to rebuild the country and install a central government after 16 years of civil war and anarchy.

Ugandan Defence Minister Crispus Kiyonga told parliamentarians that the AU peacekeepers would have three main responsibilities in Somalia. These included peacekeeping operations, supporting the transitional government to stabilise the country, and helping out with humanitarian aid. AU soldiers were mandated to shoot back if attacked.

The timing of the deployment is still unsure, although Ugandan Defence Ministry sources said a date would be made public within one or two days. The AU has been criticised for offering too little help too late for Somalia, which is becoming more and more insecure for each day that passes without foreign peacekeepers.

The AU on the other hand is pointing to financial problems when it comes to funding a large peace operation in Somalia, and had obviously hoped for greater donations from Western countries before sending out a mission to Somalia that could get stuck in the country for several years. For now, the AU has only given a six-month mandate for its Somalia mission.

The Ugandan government however has made sure to secure funding for its Somalia peacekeeping mission. Officially, costs are to be covered partly through the Kampala Defence Ministry and partly through the AU. President Museveni in late January however met with US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Jendayi Fraser, who had guaranteed him "that the American government will provide logistical support to the [Ugandan army's] contingent to Somalia."

Uganda is one of Washington's major allies in Africa. Further, the Algerian government has offered to transport the Ugandan contingent to Somalia. On the other hand, Italy - Somalia's former colonial masters - has pledged assistance for Somali a peace and reconstruction conference and to assist in non-military operations.

By staff writer

© afrol News

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