SOMALIA: UA Agrees to Send Troops to Somalia
Congolese President Denis Sassou Nguesso, the current chairman of the pan-African body, told a news conference today:
We have decided that the African Union, together with regional groups like IGAD, should take the situation in Somalia in hand.
President Denis Sassou Nguesso went on by saying:
The African Union will give all its support to the interim government, and we invite the international community to join us in supporting them, while favoring internal dialogue in Somalia.
This is, without a doubt, a grave political mistake by an organization run by dictators and oppressors which could have serious security repercussions for Somalia and for its neighbors. Indeed it could inflict damage to the political and security stability of the entire region and to a lesser degree the world as a whole.
Somalia does not need any foreign troops at the moment. The internal political conflict must be resolved by Somalis before armed foreigners can be invited into the country. As Tim Craig of the Washington Post newspaper reported today (see below) the misguided American military involvement in Somalia drastically altered the political landscape in the country-for the worse. A hasty and poorly thought plan to deploy foreign troops into Somalia as peace-keepers will most probably make things much worse. The political fire in Somali does not need more gasoline! Foreign troops must stay out for the moment!
It goes without saying that the fact that the AU will support the TFG is a step in the right direction.
You can click here to view a note I wrote about few days ago