UN throws full military weight into Abyei force

4,000 Ethiopian troops to join 1,000 strong UN force in Sudan's Abyei following north-south crisis.

Middle East Online

The UN has not yet officially announced the force size UNITED NATIONS - The 4,000 Ethiopian troops that the United Nations wants to send to the disputed Sudanese region of Abyei will be one of the strongest forces ever assembled for a territory of this size, officials said Monday. There are currently about 1,000 UN troops in Abyei, which has been occupied by north Sudan forces since May 21, following disputes with southern forces. Abyei is just 10,000 square kilometers (3,800 square miles) and by comparison the whole UN mission in north and south Sudan, which is 2.5 million square kilometers (965,000 square miles), has 10,000 troops and police. The Ethiopian contingent is also expected to take attack helicopters to patrol the territory that has become nearly deserted. "It is a big force but there is already fighting in South Kordofan nearby and the border conflict could spread further," warned one UN diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity as the United Nations has not yet officially announced the force size. "We also want the people who have fled to return." The United States has said it will quickly propose a UN Security Council resolution giving UN backing to the Ethiopian force for Abyei. "We want to underscore the urgency of Ethiopian troops deploying immediately to Abyei" under UN auspices, US ambassador Susan Rice told a Security Council debate on Sudan where a north-south accord on Abyei was announced. "The United States will soon circulate a draft Security Council resolution for council consideration to authorize creation of this proposed interim security force," Rice said. African Union mediator Thabo Mbeki told the Security Council that the Khartoum government and southern Sudan had signed an accord to demilitarize Abyei, which is disputed by the two sides. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon welcomed the Sudan accord but warned both sides "to abide in full by its provisions to demilitarize the area" and provide "full cooperation" with the UN mission and the Ethiopian troops.