Somalia Conflict
January 3, 2007
Following a meeting in Brussels on Somalia, an international high-level contact group for Somalia will meet Friday in Nairobi to discuss sending peacekeepers to the war-torn country, German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier told reporters after talks with European members of the group.
Steinmeier, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said a potential peace-keeping operation in war-torn Somalia "will rather be of African origin" and called on Somalia's interim government to engage in peace talks with Islamist groups.
However, the EU would continue giving humanitarian aid to the country, Steinmeier said, adding that EU foreign ministers later this month will discuss further help for Somalia.
In recent days Somali and Ethiopian armed forces have taken over much of south Somalia from Islamist militias.
An inclusive process needed
Sweden's foreign minister Carl Bildt called for an "inclusive political process" in Somalia.
Europe was ready to support the country "with humanitarian aid, reconstruction help and diplomatic efforts," he added.
However, EU forces as well as United Nations and African Union troops were already overstretched with peacekeeping operations worldwide, Bildt said.
"There might be the need for (peacekeeping) forces to assist a political process (in Somalia)," he said. "But sending forces without (having) that process would be a recipe for disaster."
He also said that it was unclear who would finance a possible African-led peacekeeping mission in Somalia.
Worried about Kenya
Steinmeier also voiced concern over a spill-over of the conflict to neighbouring Kenya. The country has stepped up its refugee screening because of the possible influx of Islamist militia members.
European members of the International Somalia Contact Group include Britain, Italy, Sweden and Norway. A top official from the EU commission, the bloc's executive arm, also attended the meeting.
The group was set up in June last year to support "peace and reconciliation" in Somalia. It also includes Tanzania and the United States.
Bildt said that future talks of the group should not only focus on the situation in Somalia but on ways how to stabilize the situation in the whole Horn of Africa.
Recent battles harsh
The recent battles in Somalia have been particularly harsh on the civilian population with thousands forced to flee their homes.
Ethiopia, which backs Somalia's weak transitional government, launched an offensive on December 24 against the Islamist movement which has controlled much of the country's south since June 2006.
Thousands of Ethiopian troops gave Somalia military enforcement in its war against the Union of Islamic Courts (UIC), capturing most of the country and forcing a mass retreat and desertion of Islamist fighters over the past few days.
The fate of the country, which fell into anarchy after the 1991 ouster of dictator Mohammed Siad Barre, hangs in the balance as Ethiopian troops could leave as early as in two weeks, potentially creating a security vacuum.
Somalia's interim government wants Ethiopian troops to stay until a peacekeeping force is deployed. But analysts say the continued presence of foreign troops could further weaken the regime.
Ethiopia earlier this week said it could not afford to keep its troops in neighbouring Somalia much longer and called for the quick deployment of international peacekeepers.