Brussels, 25/01/2010 (Agence Europe) - On Monday 25 January, the Foreign Affairs Council gave its agreement of principle to the launch of a new EU-led operation for Somalia. The small mission, called EUTRA, will aim to train Somali security forces, as part of the support afforded to Somalia's Transitional Federal Government (TFG). The mission also comes within broader coordination of initiatives already taken in this field, especially by Ugandan forces (see EUROPE 10021). Activation, however, will depend on final arrangements relating to the system for monitoring persons trained, as well as mechanisms to ensure that the future Somali recruits are paid - two elements seen by some member states as essential, especially the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.
In conclusions adopted on Monday, the Council above all calls for these two matters to be resolved in a satisfactory manner and for the solution to be found before the mission gets under way. At this stage, one of the tracks envisaged for the payment of salaries would be to establish a payment and audit system through the mechanism proposed by the PricewaterhouseCoopers organisation, supported not only by the United Nations but also by the United States. However, a fund of about $10-15 million to cover such spending has still to be set in place.
The structure of this small mission, which is no more than 100 strong, will vary a little compared to other EU missions. There will be a single EUTRA headquarters established in Uganda, and the mission will have two liaison offices, one in Nairobi (to ensure the link with the United Nations and the African Union) and the other in Brussels. It will be responsible for ensuring specialised training for some 2000 Somali soldiers including instructors, in close coordination with the Somali transitional government, Uganda, the African Union, the United Nations and the United States. Rather than ensure basic training, already provided by Ugandan forces, EUTRA will provide specific training for officers and non-commissioned officers with a view, in particular, to training future Somali force instructors. Training also provides for courses on the protection of human rights and international humanitarian law. In addition to Spain, which is the framework nation for this mission, and France, about ten EU member states have stated their intention to take part in the mission. Spanish Colonel Gonzalez Elul has been appointed as head of planning. The mission, which should begin in the spring with the next intake of trainees (registration carried out by the Ugandan forces) will consist of two training sessions, each lasting six months, and will end in 2011. (A.By./transl.jl)