General Duke Posted December 11, 2008 Uganda denies wanting to withdraw Somali force 11 Dec 11, 2008 - 4:42:57 AM Uganda on Thursday strongly denied comments by Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi that it wanted to pull its peacekeeping forces out of Somalia. "This is absolutely not true and this is contrary to eveything we have said. Our position has always been that if Ethiopia pulls out of Somalia, we will increase our presence there," Uganda's deputy foreign minister Okello Oryem told AFP. Oryem said he was "surprised" by Meles' statement to the Ethiopian parliament earlier Thursday in which he said Uganda and Burundi wanted to withdrawl their forces as soon as possible, even before an Ethiopian pullout scheduled for early next month. "Uganda is prepared to increase its battalion if there is a need," added Oryem. AFP Quote Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
