Peacekeeping Mission At Advanced Stage, Says Zuma
Responding to questions in Parliament, Cape Town this afternoon, Mr Zuma said the mission, comprising troops from South Africa, Ethiopia and Mozambique, would be deployed once logistical and political consultations had been finalised.
'A Multinational Military-Strategic Planning Team under the leadership of major-general Sipho Binda of the SANDF is working on the details regarding the deployment,' he explained, adding that the AU had deployed 35 military observers in Bujumbura.
He said the appointment of an Interim Chairperson for the Joint Ceasefire Commission (JCC), Colonel Samba, who is the Chief of Staff of the Mission of the United Nations in the Congo, (MONUC), would also take the peace process forward.
'The JCC will expedite the process of establishing assembly zones for combatants, and the demobilisation, disarmament and repatriation of armed combatants of the various parties,' said the Burundian mediator.
Asked whether other peace initiatives in the continent were bearing fruit, Mr Zuma said they were continuing to intensify efforts under the auspices of the AU and the United Nations.
'(This) to find peaceful and durable solutions to the various conflicts in the continent, mainly in Sudan, Comoros, Somalia, Western Sahara and Cote d'Ivoire,' he said.
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19 Mars 2003 à 14:45 dans
- zsandf (anglais)
