The United States is assisting Rwanda in equipping its peacekeeping troops ahead of a mission to the war-ravaged Darfur region of western Sudan, the U.S. special envoy to Sudan said Wednesday.
Some 900 Rwandan troops will be trained, equipped and deployed to their mission in Darfur in June, with another 1,600 to follow in August, said U.S. Ambassador Richard Williamson, who was appointed U.S. President George W. Bush's special envoy in January.
Williamson said the training and equipment offered are part of Bush's 100-million-U.S.-dollar pledge to help African peacekeepers.
A joint U.N.-African Union force took over duties in Darfur from a beleaguered AU force in January in a bid to stem the violence.
Four Rwandan battalions with about 2,700 troops are currently stationed in the region.
According to Rodolphe Adada, the envoy for the AU-UN force known as UNAMID, the first new battalions for Darfur are scheduled to arrive in June.
"We need a lot of equipment and the U.S. has accepted to give it to complete four battalions," said Rwanda's U.N. Ambassador Joseph Nsengimana.
Source:Xinhua
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