The African Union invites the EU to train Somali soldiers

(BRUSSELS2) It's a letter of a few paragraphs, sent by the Commission of the African Union (AU) to the Swedish ambassador posted in Nairobi, who represents the European Union. The letter may seem quite innocuous. But it is the necessary prerequisite for the establishment of the EU military operation. The AU thus confirms the African Union's interest in seeing the development of the EU mission to train Somali soldiers.

It is, indeed, one of the major tasks of AMISOM to assist in the establishment of a plan for stabilization and national security in Somalia. AMISOM has already trained troops, with France and Djibouti - recalls the letter - by providing in a military barracks enough to receive the necessary support in terms of food, social services and training. This kind of services should be provided to future recruits”in order to ensure their subsistence and avoid losing them in clans of militias and extremists".

A framework agreement. The African Union thus proposes to have a framework agreement between the two institutions "to define the roles and responsibilities of each entity, during and after training". A team could thus be put in place to develop a draft agreement, taking into account European planning.