The Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF) acting Chief of Training and Operations, Lt. Col. Benon Biraro, was quoted by the state-owned daily, New Vision, as saying Tuesday, We are trying to build capacity in peacekeeping and humanitarian assistance in times of crisis.

Biraro said the UPDF 3rd battalion now being trained by the Americans in Kabamba, western Uganda, will act as trainers.

They will be a demonstration battalion to train others, he told journalists. The 60-day exercise commenced last month. It is being conducted by the Green Beret soldiers from Fort Bragg, North Carolina.

The exercise is part of US President Bill Clinton's plan for an All-African Crisis Response Force. Uganda and Senegal were the first to receive the American trainers under the scheme, which is also expected to involve troops from Ghana, Malawi, Mali and Tunisia.

Biraro said apart from offering peace keeping outside the country, the battalion could always be called in to assist the masses in emergency situations such as the 1966 landslide in the Rwenzori mountains in Western Uganda.

August 20, 1997
Source: Newswire