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Central African Republic PM Says France To Increase Troops To 1,200
A French soldier conducts reconnaissance on the roof of the Mpoko airport in Bangui November 23, 2013. PHOTO BY REUTERS/Joe Penney
By John Irish
25/11/2013
PARIS (Reuters) - France will triple its troop strength in the Central African Republic to 1,200 to help bolster security in the war-torn country Paris has warned is on the verge of chaos, the Central African nation's Prime Minister said on Monday.
Speaking in Paris after meeting French Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, Nicolas Tiangaye said France had told him an increase in French troops would take place once the UN Security Council had voted on a resolution over the next week.
"We spoke about the security question. France has 410 soldiers now in Bangui and that will be strengthened by 800, to take the number to 1,200. More if needed," Tiangaye told Reuters.
The mineral-rich but impoverished nation of 4.6 million people, has descended into violence and chaos since Seleka rebels, many of them from neighboring Chad and Sudan, ousted President Francois Bozize in March.
The U.S. State Department estimates that nearly 400,000 people have been displaced and 68,000 have fled to neighboring countries since Seleka leader and interim president Michel Djotodia lost control of his loose coalition of warlords.
Tiangaye said the troop boost would help secure the road from neighboring Cameroon to the riverside capital Bangui, protecting a vital corridor and allowing supply trucks into the landlocked country.
The troops will also protect the northwest and any areas where African troops needed to restore security.
Troop deployment was expected to begin in December after a United Nations Security Council resolution that would be voted, mandating African troops with French support to intervene in the country, Tiangaye said.
The resolution was on the table at the U.N. and could be voted before a security summit of African leaders in Paris on December 6.
"What is unacceptable is that the situation has become worse and there are multiple crimes against humanity in the country and my concern is to put an end to this as quickly as possible," he said.
(Reporting by John Irish; Writing by Bate Felix)
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