President praises armed forces for beating back rebels

President Lansana Conte of Guinea on Tuesday praised his country's armed forces for beating back attacks by dissidents earlier this year but called on Guineans to be on their guard. "We must remain vigilant and prepare ourselves for any eventuality despite our constant desire for peace for ourselves and our neighbours," Conte said in an Independence Day address broadcast on radio. "In fact, the moment of calm that we are experiencing now can either lead to definitive and lasting peace or serve as a period of tactical withdrawal of the enemy who would later try to take us by surprise." "Fellow Guineans, this is why we should always be ready to defend our dear nation," he added. "At the same time, we must do all we can to restore peace in our subregion, particularly in the states of the Mano River Union," which comprises Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Tension escalated this year between Guinea and Liberia following attacks in southern Guinea by forces opposed to the Guinean government. Guinea accused Liberia of backing the dissidents. The authorities in Monrovia, on the other hand, charged that Guinea's government was supporting anti-government forces who have been carrying out attacks in northwest Liberia in recent years. However, Guinea's border areas have been relatively quiet in recent months and no attacks were reported in northwestern Liberia in the past few weeks. Foreign and internal ministers from the three countries have held periodic meetings in the past two months to improve relations between them and end the insecurity. The three presidents are scheduled to meet early next year.