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From: Biniam Tekle (biniamt@dehai.org)
Date: Sat Jul 24 2010 - 15:32:09 EDT
http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100724/wl_africa_afp/africanunionsummitsomaliaeritrea
Eritrea says talks not force right approach to Somalia
by Aaron Maasho Aaron Maasho – 1 hr 53 mins ago 7/24/2010
KAMPALA (AFP) – Africa should talk to Somalia's Shebab rebels instead of
sending in more troops, Eritrea said Saturday as the continent's leaders
gathered in Kampala for a summit dominated by the Somali conflict.
Two weeks after suicide attacks claimed by the Al Qaeda-linked group killed
76 people in the Ugandan capital, the African Union announced more troops
were on the way to boost its AMISOM force in Mogadishu.
But Saleh, who dismissed accusations that Eritrea has been supporting the
Shebab, warned that further troop deployments would only exacerbate regional
insecurity.
"We believe that military involvement can not bring a peaceful solution,"
Eritrean Foreign Minister Osman Saleh told AFP on the sidelines of the
pre-summit ministerial gathering.
AMISOM was first deployed in 2007 to protect the western-backed transitional
federal government (TFG) in Mogadishu. But it has failed to stabilise the
country and been pinned back by the Shebab and their Hezb al-Islam allies.
"We say that priority should be given to a political situation," he added.
"An all-inclusive political process has to take place, including Shebab,
Hezb al-Islam, the TFG, Puntland and Somaliland," he said referring to the
rival movements and breakway regions inside Somalia.
The AU's top executive, Jean Ping, announced on Friday that Guinea was ready
to send a battalion to boost AMISOM's current troop level, which currently
comprises just over 6,000 Ugandans and Burundians.
Angola, Mozambique and South Africa are also expected to contribute forces,
according to diplomats.
Some observers believe a beefed-up AMISOM could significantly weaken the
Shebab and reduce their presence in Mogadishu if given a more robust
mandate: the force's present task however is mainly to protect the Somali
government.
Saleh however drew parallels with Afghanistan, where an international force
led by the United States has been bogged down in a fight against Taliban
insurgents since 2001.
"There may be certain terrorist elements, but how can we wipe out this
thing? Not by bringing international forces inside," he said.
"Otherwise it's going to be like Iraq and Afghanistan. The issue in
Afghanistan is not solved... Now they are saying that we have to deal with
constructive engagement with the Taliban. Why not here?" Saleh added.
"AMISOM might increase its size now and then, but so did Ethiopia," he
continued, referring to the December 2006-January 2009 Ethiopian military
intervention in Somali in support of the government there.
"They did nothing but create the worst humanitarian situation in the world.
In this way you can not save Somalia," Saleh added.
The Eritrean minister will represent President Isaias Afeworki, who has
rarely attended the bloc's meetings since the 1998-2000 war with Ethiopia,
where the AU's headquarters are located.
Some African diplomats are sceptical of Asmara's renewed involvement in the
bloc's activities, which contradicts Isaias' longstanding criticism over a
perceived bias towards Addis Ababa.
They say Eritrea is only acting after it was slapped with UN sanctions in
2009 over the "destabilising" impact of its alleged involvement in Somalia
on the region.
Earlier in March, a UN report claimed the Red Sea state continued to support
armed Islamist groups fighting the Somali government, in violation of an
arms embargo.
On Tuesday, a senior US
lawmaker<http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20100724/wl_africa_afp/africanunionsummitsomaliaeritrea#>called
for Eritrea to be added to a terrorism blacklist, which currently
only includes Cuba, Iran, Sudan and Syria.
Saleh dismissed the claims however.
"This is an allegation that doesn't have any evidence. We haven't supported
the Shebab," he said.
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