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Somalia: AU authorises maritime, air defence fighters for AMISOM Mogadishu Wednesday 16 December 2009 SMC The African Union's Peace and Security Department has approved plans to train more peacekeepers serving in its Mission in Somalia on maritime security and air defence capabilities to better protect war-ravaged Somalia. Somali, the hotbed of hijacking of marine vessels and a long-time target of external Islamist jihadists, has recently suffered a spate of bombings, with the latest such attack leading to the killing of three ministers at a graduation ceremony in Mogadishu. African countries contributing troops to the African Union Peacekeeping Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) held a strategy meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, Monday, where they ag reed that the Mission still lacked basic elements such as air defence. "The meeting observed that there exist operational limitations to the performance of AMISOM in the areas of maritime and air defence capabilities, and called for assistance in building the Mission's capabilities in this respect," an AU statement said Tuesday. Djibouti, Somalia's neighbour, is among the few countries in the Horn of Africa region to pledge peacekeepers to the overstretched AMISOM, which has been a target of attacks, planned by radical Islamic groups seeking to takeover full control of Somalia. The radical Islamist elements have been staging their fights for the control of the Southern Port of Kismayu and recently edged closer to the Kenyan border, where the Al Shabaab-controlled militants took control of a key border crossing point Southwards. Kenyan Defence Minister Yusuf Hajji said Nairobi was ready to tackle the Somali insurgents if they crossed into the Kenyan territory. The AU meeting, chaired by the Commissioner for Peace and Security Ramtane Lamamra, noted that the continued inability of AMISOM to reach its authorised strength continues to be a serious challenge. Lamamra said the recruitment and training programme of Somali Security Forces should be given more impetus in order to be able to cope effectively with the security situation in Somalia. The ministers and representatives of the troop contributing countries at the meeting, including Burundi, Uganda and Djibouti, also emphasized the need to adequately train, equip, sustain and retain Somali Security Forces in the current circumstances. They proposed that a study of new requirements necessary for AMISOM to fulfill its objectives, including the added aspect of training of Somali Security Forces, be carried out. Meanwhile, the African countries that have contributed troops and equipment to the AMISOM have been compensated for the equipment they contributed. According to a statement issued after the Addis Ababa meeting, the confirmation of pledges by donors has been obtained to the tune of US$204 million, while US$80 million has been redeemed so far. The European Union (EU) has confirmed payment of Euro 5.4 million fore imbursement to AMISOM troop contributing countries and announced that the next installment of Euro 30 million will follow shortly. Source: Afrique en Ligue Somaliweyn Media Center “SMC”
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