U.S. Peacekeeping Plan for Somalia Criticized

Sending Intervention Force Could Create Wider War With Islamic Militias, Some Fear

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 28 -- The United States has finalized a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that would authorize a force of East African peacekeepers to intervene in Somalia to prevent the overthrow of the country's struggling government at the hands of Islamic militias. But some European diplomats and other critics expressed concern that the initiative could trigger a wider war in the region.

The U.S. proposal comes as an alliance of militias, known as the Conservative Council of Islamic Courts, is extending its military and political control over Somalia and threatening the country's weak interim government. Ethiopia has sent thousands of troops to help prop up the government while its rival, Eritrea, has deployed thousands of troops to fight alongside the militias, according to a recent U.N. report.

The U.S. text, which is backed by China, Russia and key African states, would permit an East African protection force to provide security for Somalia's transitional federal government, based in Baidoa. It would partly lift a 14-year arms embargo so East African troops could train a Somali security force and import weapons to fulfill their mandate. And it would also commit the Security Council to "consider taking measures" against states that try to "overthrow" the interim government, threaten regional stability or "seek to prevent or block" peace talks.

An alliance of seven East African governments, known as the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, first proposed such a regional force to protect Somalia's interim government more than 1 1/2 years ago, before the Islamic militias emerged as a major power. The troops probably would be drawn primarily from Uganda, council diplomats said, but Ethiopia and Kenya have also expressed an interest in participating.

The African Union subsequently backed the proposal, but it then languished at the United Nations.

The case for an intervention force became more urgent this past summer, after the militias seized control of Mogadishu, Somalia's capital, from a loose alliance of Somali warlords. U.S. and African diplomats, along with others at the United Nations, are worried that the militias are poised to drive out the government. They have encouraged the interim government and the Islamic Courts Union to negotiate a political settlement to end the fighting.

European and U.N. officials have privately voiced concern that the establishment of the force, which the militias oppose, could provoke a new military offensive against the government. They have also expressed fears that the conflict could reignite fighting between Ethiopia and Eritrea, which ended their border war in 2000.

"We need to . . . encourage the Somali parties to continue the dialogue," said U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan. "What is also important is we need to make sure that neighboring countries do not get drawn in, because there is a tendency for some of the neighboring countries to get drawn in."

The International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think tank, issued a warning Monday that the U.S. resolution "could trigger all-out war in Somalia" and destabilize the Horn of Africa.

"You don't win in Somalia by picking one side and support it and funneling arms to it," said Nick Grono, an expert on Africa at the organization. He said the Islamic militias have warned that they would respond to foreign intervention with the declaration of a holy war. "That is a recipe for jihad," he said.

France and other European governments have asked the United States to consider amendments designed to assure the Islamic militias that they are not taking sides in the war. For instance, they are calling for the exclusion of the countries bordering Somalia -- Ethiopia, Djibouti and Kenya -- from participating in the force.

A U.S. spokesman said the United States probably will present its draft resolution to the 15-nation council on Wednesday. Other council diplomats suggested that the U.N. dispute may delay that.

John R. Bolton, the U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, said the United States is "trying to move as fast as we can" to call for a vote on the resolution. But he said he is still "seeking agreement from a number of countries on some critical points."

"We need to do something as opposed to just watching the situation deteriorate," he added. "But we want to get it right."