Congo Mission Raises Questions About German Military Involvement

After receiving authorization from the United Nations Security Council on Friday, a 1,400 strong multinational peacekeeping force led by France is due to begin deploying troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo as part of efforts to end brutal killings in the country’s civil war-torn northeastern provinces.

The troops will reinforce the current 700-strong lightly-armed U.N. force in the Ituri region, where ethnic fighting has left more than 400 dead in recent weeks. Under the U.N. Charter, the new troops, which will be in place until September 1, 2003, are authorized to use force to prevent widespread massacres, protect civilians and secure the nearby airport. France is sending 800 to 1,000 soldiers, while Belgium, Spain, Italy and Britain are reported to consider contributing troops.

Question marks over German participation

The deployment of the emergency force, which the U.N. hopes will help avoid a repeat of massacres such as in Rwanda and Bosnia in the 1990s, has raised fresh questions about German military participation in international peacekeeping activities.

U.N. Secretary General Kofi Anan requested the EU two weeks ago to put together an emergency peacekeeping force for Congo. The request came at a time when EU leaders were making final decisions on the formation of a rapid reaction force.

Though EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana was eager to mark the beginning of the EU's first military operation in Africa, EU diplomats told Reuters last week Berlin was initially cool to Anan’s request. The German government is reported to have had misgivings about an EU operation in Congo and argued that Congo was too distant from Europe, a tough military challenge and a conflict on which there was no agreed EU foreign policy. But in an apparent change of stance Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer told Solana at a G8 Foreign Ministers meeting in Paris recently that Germany would drop objections to the deployment of an EU peacekeeping force in eastern Congo, but would not actively participate.

Likewise, German Deputy Foreign Minister Kerstin Müller, who has been touring the conflict-torn region, described German military involvement as "very difficult". Speaking to reporters in Uganda over the weekend, the minister said U.N. Secretary-General Anan wanted both France and Germany to participate in peace operations.

"The force certainly merits every support, but we need to examine what’s possible within our capabilities," she said adding that Germany would politically support the peace mission and provide humanitarian help. Müller stressed that Germany was already the second-largest troop-provider in peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan and in the Balkans.

Germany’s Ambassador to the U.N. Gunter Pleuger last week also ruled out German troop participation. "One must consider that we already play the leading role in peacekeeping operations in Afghanistan and are also heavily involved in keeping the peace in the Balkans. I don’t know whether the military forces can be available for such a thing right now," he told reporters.

Politicians in favor of military involvement

However, leading politicians from Germany’s main parties are urging Germany to get involved in stopping the Congolese bloodshed.

The ruling Social Democratic Party’s (SPD) Defense expert Verena Wohlleben told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper that the deployment of an EU force under a U.N.-mandate was the "right way". Her view was echoed by the Green Party’s Deputy Parliamentary leader Winfried Nachtwei. "We must now quickly decide how the German military can contribute to the EU mission in the Congo," he told the paper.

Foreign Affairs expert for the opposition Christian Democratic Union (CDU) Friedbert Pflüger urged the German government to provide financial and logistical support to the Congo mission, including the deployment of the mobile army hospital "MedEvac". Even the liberal Free Democratic Party’s (FDP) Deputy Chairman Walter Döring told the Welt am Sonntag paper that everything must be done to avoid a "second Rwanda." "If the EU intervenes under a U.N. mandate, Germany must send troops," he said.

Former Bundeswehr general warns of dangers

But despite the overwhelming support for German participation in the Congo from across party lines, former German Bundeswehr General Klaus Naumann has warned against dispatching EU troops to Congo.

Naumann told the Welt am Sonntag the northeast Congo entails an entirely different situation as compared to the Balkans and soldiers from Europe are not prepared for it. "One needs a very robust mandate for Congo," Naumann said, adding it should include the preemptive use of weapons.