UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The UN Security
Council agreed on Thursday to reinforce the UN Mission in the Democratic
Republic of Congo (MONUC) by sending 3,000 more troops.
Unanimously adopting resolution 1843, the 15-member
body authorized a temporary increase of the military strength of MONUC of up to
2,785 military personnel, and the strength of its formed police unit of up to
300 personnel.
The council authorized the immediate deployment of
those additional capacities until Dec. 31, and expressed its intention to extend
this authorization on the occasion of MONUC's mandate renewal, underlining that
the duration of stay of the additional forces will depend on the security
situation in the Kivus.
The council stressed that the temporary increase in
personnel was aimed at enabling MONUC to reinforce its capacity to protect
civilians, to reconfigure its structure and forces and to optimize their
deployment.
It underscored the importance of MONUC implementing
its mandate in full, including through robust rules of engagement.
The Security Council established MONUC to facilitate
the implementation of the Lusaka Accord signed in 1999. With a budget exceeding
1 billion U.S. dollars, MONUC, which currently has over 17,000 troops, is the
world's largest and most expensive peacekeeping operation.
BRUSSELS, Nov. 20 (Xinhua) -- The European Parliament
on Thursday asked the UN Security Council to take urgent action to address the
deteriorating situation in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The European Parliament, in a resolution, asked for
measures toprevent any further attacks on the civilian population of the eastern
provinces of the DRC and expressed extreme concern at the increase in clashes in
North Kivu and the consequences for the population in the region. Full story
