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By Robin Njogu & PPS
16 January 2007
President Mwai Kibaki and Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi met on Tuesday in the Kenyan capital largely to discuss Nairobi's intervention to find lasting peace in Somalia.
Kibaki is among leading figures in the region who are involved in efforts to pacify Somalia following the ouster of the Islamic Courts Union.
The talks centered around the possibility of convening an Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Heads of State and Government summit to discuss a joint peacekeeping force for Somalia.
In a joint communiqué after the meeting, the two leaders underlined their commitment in mobilizing regional and international support to help Somalia achieve peace and to embark on the process of reconstruction.
The leaders called for the immediate deployment of an AU-IGAD stabilization force to Somalia in line with UN Security Council Resolution 1725 of 6th December, 2006.
The two leaders also welcomed offers made by a number of African countries to contribute troops and invited other African countries to support the initiative.
They discussed bilateral and regional issues particularly the diplomatic initiatives to end the Somali conflict currently being undertaken by President Kibaki as Chairman of IGAD.
At the regional front, President Kibaki and the Ethiopian Prime Minister welcomed the progress towards stabilizing the situation in Somalia.
As Chairman of IGAD, President Kibaki has dispatched six special envoys to South Africa, Mozambique, Angola, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zambia, Nigeria and Tunisia to explore possibilities of additional troop contribution to the peace-keeping force.
President Kibaki and Prime Minister Zenawi noted that the developments in Somalia and in particular the return of the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) to Mogadishu was a positive development which presented a window of opportunity for the international community to consolidate peace and stabilize Somalia.
In this connection, they agreed to intensify consultations between the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia and the immediate neighbouring countries in order to enhance the stabilization in Somalia.
The two leaders also called on the Transitional Federal Government to continue pursuing the process of consolidation of peace and reconciliation in Somalia.
Speaking during the meeting, the Ethiopian Prime Minister who was on a working visit in the country at the invitation of President Kibaki thanked Kenya for the constructive role it has continued to play in the regional peace efforts.
Uganda has already pledged 1,000 soldiers and other African countries were expected to make similar commitments.
Ethiopia has maintained that its troops would remain in Somalia for another "few weeks" while the government pacifies the nation after the defeat of militant Islamists who had held most of the south for six months.
Source: Capital FM