The Somali government has called for a delay in the withdrawal of African Union peacekeepers due to concerns about a potential "security vacuum." This was reported by Reuters.
The African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) is scheduled to conclude by the end of the year, with plans to replace it with smaller contingents. However, in May, the Somali government sent a letter to the acting chairman of the African Union's Peace and Security Council, requesting to postpone until September the withdrawal of 2,000 troops initially set to leave by the end of June.
A commission, conducted under the mandate of the UN Security Council, warned that "a hasty reduction of ATMIS personnel would lead to a security vacuum."
Negotiations about the new mission's composition have been challenging. Ethiopia, due to its conflict with Somalia over a memorandum on access to a port in Somaliland, might withdraw some of its troops. The African Union's Peace and Security Council is expected to discuss today the reduction of the current contingent and the future mission.
Currently, 5,000 out of 18,500 peacekeepers have already left Somalia. The new contingent is expected to be no more than 10,000 and will focus on tasks such as securing major population centers.
The Somali army consists of approximately 32,000 soldiers, but the government acknowledged in a report to the AU a shortage of about 11,000 trained personnel due to "high combat intensity" and "attrition." The government claimed its soldiers could counter the terrorist group Al-Shabaab with limited external support. The US maintains a contingent of 450 advisors who assist local military personnel and conduct drone strikes against militants. Somalia also cooperates militarily with Turkey and Qatar.
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Based on TASS materials