Mali crisis: UK mulls more troops
2013-01-29 07:47
London - Britain is considering sending about 200 non-combat
troops to help the military operation against Islamist militants in Mali, with
a decision expected within days, media reports said on Tuesday.
This would likely include a small number deployed to Mali
itself, as part of an EU training mission. A larger number would help train
West African forces in the region to join the battle alongside the French and
Malian troops.
Prime Minister David Cameron called President Francois
Hollande on Sunday to say Britain was "keen" to provide further help
to French forces in Mali.
But his Downing Street office declined to give more details
other than to stress that, as more than a decade of conflict in Afghanistan
finally approached its end, Britain would not be deploying combat troops to
another war zone.
Asked about the latest reports on Tuesday, a Downing Street spokesperson
told AFP: "We're not commenting on troops on the ground."
Amid reports that an announcement could come later on Tuesday,
or at least within the coming days, she said planning for further assistance
"really depends on the discussions with the French".
Britain's national security advisor Kim Darroch was in Paris
on Monday for talks on what London could do to help, after already sending a
Sentinel surveillance plane and two C-17 transport planes to assist French
forces.
The Guardian and Mirror newspapers said the 200 troops would
include tens deployed as part of an EU mission to train Malian forces, the rest
in neighbouring countries to help train a regional intervention force.
Training mission
The Daily Mail said those involved would be drawn from
infantry regiments, logistics and signals corps, with 40 going to Mali to join
the EU mission.
Nearly 8 000 African troops from Chad and the west African
grouping Ecowas are expected to take over from the French troops, which went in
19 days ago.
The 500-strong EU mission will provide instruction to the
Malian army on command and control, logistics, civilian protection and
humanitarian law. It will have no combat role and be made up of soldiers from
10 EU nations.
Asked about the EU mission in the House of Commons last
week, Cameron said that "if there were a British contribution to it, it
would be in the tens, not in the hundreds.
"It is a training mission, not a combat mission,"
he stressed, seeking to avoid any comparisons with Britain's military action in
Afghanistan.
"The lead on this will clearly be taken by the French,
who have the greatest interest in rapidly training up west African forces to
replace the French forces that are currently in action in Mali."
In his phone call with Hollande, Cameron explained
"that we are keen to continue to provide further assistance where we can,
and depending on what French requirements there may be", a Downing Street spokesperson
told reporters on Monday.
- SAPA
