Norwegian–Swedish troop contribution welcomed by UN and AU

Wednesday 3 October, the UN and the African Union (AU) notified Norway that they gratefully accept the offer by Norway and Sweden to provide an engineer unit for the UN/AU Hybrid Operation in Darfur (UNAMID). The UN and the AU will now notify the Sudanese authorities of the decision.

“A major outstanding issue relating to the Norwegian–Swedish contribution has now been resolved. This brings us an important step closer to the aim of securing greater support for UN peace operations,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs Jonas Gahr Støre.
 
“We feel that it is positive that the UN and AU have welcomed the Norwegian–Swedish troop contribution. Norway will now continue its planning, with the aim of deploying our contribution early next year,” said Mr Støre, emphasising that Norway will coordinate its actions with the UN. 

The Norwegian–Swedish unit will consist of up to 400 personnel. UNAMID will have a total staff of around 26 000, consisting of 19 500 military personnel and 6 400 police officers. Norway will also be contributing police officers to UNAMID.
 
“We recognise that this will be an extremely demanding mission. We therefore want to ensure that the unit has reliable supply lines and robust close-range defence and medical capabilities, to ensure optimal security for personnel. This is particularly important in light of the fact that the unit will be deployed in an area where the climatic conditions and security situation are extremely challenging,” said Minister of Defence Anne-Grete Strøm-Erichsen.

The Norwegian–Swedish unit is expected to be deployed in Darfur for 12 months. It will include engineering resources to enable it to provide effective support to UNAMID during the demanding initial phase.