Cablegate: Benin Unable to Consider Troop Contribution to Hybrid

VZCZCXRO1788
RR RUEHBZ RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHPA RUEHROV
DE RUEHCO #0485 1840305
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 030305Z JUL 07
FM AMEMBASSY COTONOU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 9635
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RUEHZK/ECOWAS COLLECTIVE
RUEHGG/UN SECURITY COUNCIL COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS COTONOU 000485

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/W, AF/RSA, and IO/PSC (DHANKINS)

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KPKO UNSC MASS BN SU
SUBJECT: BENIN UNABLE TO CONSIDER TROOP CONTRIBUTION TO HYBRID
DARFUR OPERATION

REF: STATE 90022

(SBU) Charge spoke on July 2 with Benin's Minister of State for
National Defense, Issifou Kogui N'Douro, to request that Benin
consider a troop contribution to the hybrid AU/UN force for Darfur.
N'Douro stated that Benin was unable to consider such a troop
contribution because he simply did not have enough troops. N'Douro
said that with PKO battalions currently deployed in Cote d'Ivoire
and DR Congo, it was beyond the means of the Beninese Armed Forces
to deploy a third battalion on a peacekeeping assignment. N'Douro
said that Benin remained committed to providing its troop
contributions in the two on-going missions, but that he would only
be able to consider another PKO if one of those two battalions was
no longer needed where it is currently deployed.

HOLTZAPPLE

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