Germany to extend peace mission in Kosovo, Darfur
May 17, 2006 (BERLIN) — The German government has decided toextend the mandate of the country’s troops serving with the NATO-led peace-keeping force KFOR in Kosovo as well as that of the airlift forces in Sudan’s war-torn Darfur region, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The 2,600 solders serving in Kosovo will stay for another year, said deputy spokesman Thomas Steg, adding that the final approval has yet to be made through a vote in the parliament.
The 17,000 strong KFOR has been based in Kosovo since the 1999 war in which Serb forces were forced to withdraw from the territory following NATO air strikes and Kosovo has since been under UN mandate.
Kosovo’s ethnic Albanian majority insists on outright independence, while its Serb minority and Belgrade are seeking to keep Kosovo at least formally within Serbia’s boundaries. The fifth round of talks will be held on May 23 in Vienna.
Meanwhile, the government also decided to extend the mandate ofits military airlift forces serving in Sudan’s Darfur region through Dec. 2, Steg said.
Germany has up to 200 troops in Darfur helping provide airlift services mainly for African Union peacekeepers.
On Wednesday, the Sudanese government rejected re-negotiation with the rebels over a peace deal signed earlier this month. The rebels claimed that the deal, signed in the Nigerian capital Abujain hopes of ending the three-year-old Darfur conflict, did not meet their demands.
(ST/Xinhua)