First battalion of national unified army completes training

A unit of the first integrated brigade of the unified national army of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) completed on Thursday a six-week training and orientation course in Kisangani, in the northeastern region of the country, a UN military spokesman said.

Announcing this during a news conference in Kisangani after the graduation ceremony, Maj Abou Thiam, a spokesman of the UN Mission in the DRC (MONUC), said the 850 soldiers who completed their training would form the brigade's first battalion. He said two more battalions are to undergo similar training soon.

Soldiers for the first battalion were drawn from the former Kinshasa army, rebel groups and armed militias, all of whom are represented in the country's national unity government that was inaugurated on 30 June 2003.

"These men were trained in peacekeeping tactics and have been officially handed over to Congolese authorities," Didier Deweerdt, information officer of the Belgian training unit, told reporters.

The government has previously stated that this first brigade would be deployed in the northeastern district of Ituri, where fighting has continued despite the end of war in the DRC. A MONUC brigade of some 4,000 soldiers has been deployed in the region since the end of July 2003.

"In the context of its mission, MONUC is ready and willing to work in close collaboration with all soldiers of the integrated Congolese army," Thiam said. "Nevertheless, it is up to the Congolese authorities to decide on their deployment."