US support for peacekeepers to Burundi

Ethiopian peacekeeping troops heading to Burundi have been supplied with almost US $1 million of military equipment and training by the US. In a statement released in Addis Ababa on Thursday, the US government said it had provided radios, mine detectors and computers to the Ethiopian National Defence Force. Some 980 troops from Ethiopia are heading to the region early next month as part of the 2,870-strong African Mission in Burundi (AMIB). An advance party headed by Brig-Gen Geberat Ayele, the deputy commander of the African peacekeeping mission, arrived in Burundi on Sunday. The troops are expected to disarm and demobilise Burundi's rebel groups who have been fighting government forces since the civil war erupted in 1993. The US support, according to the statement, is part of the African Contingency Operations Training and Assistance (ACOTA) programme run by the US Defence department. “The programme aims to build peacekeeping capabilities in African militaries,” the statement added. “The equipment and training provided by ACOTA will enhance the capability of Ethiopian peacekeepers for taking part in the Africa Union mission in Burundi.” The US has stepped up its military support for governments in the Horn of Africa as part of the global war on terror.