MOGADISHU (Somaliguardian) – Leaders of the East African countries contributing their troops to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) urged the United Nations to lift arms embargo on Somalia after signing an agreement on force drawdown procedures in a meeting held in Kampala on Thursday.
The leaders “called on the Council (Security Council) to consider lifting the arms embargo on Somalia to enable the country shoulder her security responsibilities,” joint communiqué reads.
Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud tweeted that they repeated “calls for Somalia’s arms embargo to be lifted & implementation of the Somali Transition Plan.”
Apart from the request, the leaders of Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Djibouti and Burundi agreed to move ahead with the drawdown of ATMIS peacekeepers by pulling out the first 2000 soldiers from the war-torn Horn of Africa nation in June. A further 3000 soldiers will leave the country subject to consideration of security situation on the ground.
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