UN concerned Darfur mission could fall short of expectations
November 21, 2007 (BEIJING) — A joint peacekeeping force planned for Darfur remains threatened by political deadlock and a shortage of equipment, the head of U.N. peacekeeping said Wednesday.
Jean-Marie Guehenno said only a “strong, robust” force stood a chance of making a difference in Darfur, given the Sudanese region’s harsh terrain.
“There are enormous expectations for that mission. I am concerned that there could be a gap between the expectations and what the mission can really deliver,” Guehenno said at the end of a visit to Beijing.
Following meetings with diplomats and military and police officials, Guehenno praised China’s growing participation in U.N. peacekeeping. That includes the deployment starting Friday of a 315-member engineering, well-digging, and medical contingent to Darfur to prepare for the arrival of the proposed 26,000-strong hybrid African Union-U.N. peacekeeping force likely early next year.
Guehenno, the U.N. undersecretary-general for peacekeeping operations, said the Darfur deployment remained “an enormous challenge, obviously.”
“As we all know, the political negotiations are still to make decisive progress, the terrain in Darfur is very difficult,” Guehenno said.
“The challenge is how much of a stronger mission will (there will be) in early 2008 and that depends on the willingness of member states to provide additional capacities. So there are still questions on whether, in early January, the mission in Darfur will be able to meet the expectations,” he said.
The joint force is to take over from a beleaguered 7,000-member African Union mission. But Sudan has yet to approve a list of contributing countries despite concessions to its demands that the force be predominantly African.
The United Nations has been negotiating with Sudan on the joint mission for over a year while the conflict in Darfur rages on. More than 200,000 people have died since fighting broke out in 2003, and the peace process suffered a setback last month when key rebels boycotted talks in Libya.
Sudan has resisted critical contributions from Thailand, Nepal and Nordic countries, while U.N. member countries have failed to offer crucial equipment including 18 transport helicopters and six support light helicopters.
Guehenno has warned the world could face a choice between delaying the takeover or starting the deployment with an ill-equipped force that may not be able to protect its own peacekeepers, let alone civilians.
The outcome, he said, “depends on the commitment of member states.”
(AP)