Germany To Train Soldiers In Somalia: Report

Berlin, Feb 10, IRNA -- Germany is to train soldiers in Somalia as part of its controversial plan to expand its role in African crisis hotspots, the Hamburg-based weekly news magazine Der Spiegel reported Sunday. German troops are to take part in a European Union-lead training mission EUTM in the Somali capital Mogadishu as early as April. A German defense ministry spokesperson pointed to ongoing discussions on such a training mission. The exact number of German soldiers to be deployed in Somalia is to be determined in either late February or early March when western countries involved in the Somali training operation are scheduled to hold a conference. Any German training mission in the African country has to be approved by the German parliament. Germany was involved in training Somali troops in Uganda until late last year but abandoned its engagement when the training mission was moved to Somalia. Berlin had reportedly viewed the security situation in Somalia as unstable at that time but has now apparently changed its mind. Chancellor Angela Merkelˈs new defense chief Ursula von der Leyen said last month that Germany should engage more strongly in Africa by sending additional military trainers to Mali and supporting the French intervention in Central African Republic. In crisis-hit African countries, Germany ˈcannot look the other way when murder and rape are a daily occurrence, if only for humanitarian reasons,ˈ said Germanyˈs first female defense minister, a powerful member of Merkelˈs cabinet. ˈIn Central Africa, a bloody war is unfolding between ... . We cannot allow this conflict to set the entire region ablaze,ˈ von der Leyen added. Most Germans oppose a bigger role for their military in the worldˈs trouble spots despite a major push by the countryˈs leadership for more global military interventions./end