AU agrees with FGS on the future of African Union Mission Forces in Somalia

African Union Commission Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat. ( FILE PHOTO - Anadolu Agency )

ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia - The African Union [AU] has agreed with the federal government of Somalia on the future of the African Union Mission Forces [AMISOM] in Somalia, just over four months before the tenure of the troops in the Horn of Africa nation elapse.

In a resolution passed in June, it was agreed that AMISOM troops stay in Somalia until December 2021, after which they will leave for their respective countries. But Somalia has been opposing the move due to the Al-Shabaab threat in the country.

A statement jointly issued by AU and FGS on Sunday indicates that a number of issues have been solved, a move the would prolong the stay of the forces in Somalia until stability is realized. The troops are largely paid by the European Union and United Nations.

They agreed on the expedited implementation of the Somali Transition Plan [STP], which would see the mission troops hand over security responsibilities to the Somali National Army [SNA] albeit progressively. Initially, STP was set to be implemented by December 2021.

Also, the two teams were unanimous that Al-Shabaab remains a major threat in the country thus the need to work jointly to eliminate the militants. A clear roadmap was given on how that would be achieved in the coming months.

According to the deal, AMISOM command control will be improved; calls for joint operations by enacting agile forces were also develop extensively discussed. A “workable, realizable, and game-changing” concept of operations [conops] should be in place by October 31, 2021.

It appears from the statement that the AU may have shelved a recent assessment by a team of AU experts that proposed a hybrid UN, AU mission after Dec 2021 as the skeleton deal doesn’t mention it. Somalia had opposed the proposals by the experts.

AMISOM has close to 22,000 soldiers in Somalia who operate under different sectors within the mission's jurisdictions. Some of the force contributing nations include Kenya, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Uganda, and Burundi, and the troops have been around since 2007.

Recently, the European Union significantly reduced the budget for operations in Somalia, thus forcing the Kenya Defense Forces team to look for alternatives to cater to the deficits. The KDF team has pledged to stay in Somalia a little bit longer.

GAROWE ONLINE