"The UN Counts on Europe" in DR Congo

Albrecht Conze is a German diplomat and the political director of the MONUC mission, which has been trying for the past six years to keep the ongoing civil war in the Democratic Republic of Congo under control. In 2002, the warring parties officially agreed to an end to the fighting in the so-called Pretoria Agreement. Despite this, armed conflict continues in the eastern part of the country, where a majority of the UN troops are stationed.

DW-WORLD.DE: Many Europeans don't understand what the Congo mission of EU troops is really all about. What are the soldiers really needed for?

Albrecht Conze: The soldiers have to be able to deal with different likely, possible or even probable moments of crisis. The first of these moments of crisis occurs around the time of the first round of elections. Once the results are announced, it's important to see who has lost and whether there is someone among the losers who might resort to violence. We have to keep in mind whether a loser has private troops that he could deploy. Between elections, it's important to make sure that the atmosphere in the city does not reach boiling point. During the run-off election, only two candidates remain. One of them will lose and then it's a similar situation as the one after the first round.

The mandate of German troops is explicitly limited to Kinshasa. Is it possible to assume that everything will really happen in the greater Kinshasa area?

This is the political heart of the country -- it will indeed be decided here whether the election outcome will be accepted or not. Rallies for one or the other candidate outside of Kinshasa won't have national consequences. That's why it's really all about the capital.

There are rumors that some politicians have already started gathering militia around Kinshasa.

We haven't seen that, we're only seeing two candidates who have always had troops that go beyond the Pretoria Agreement. That's the current president, Kabila, and one of four vice presidents, Jean-Pierre Bemba. They have to be watched carefully after each round of elections -- depending on the outcome.

How did the local population react to the EU mission? Do people even know about this?

The population will only really realize this when European soldiers arrive and become visible while driving around the city. But it's already possible to say that most people here react in a positive way. That's been visible in reports on German TV. But in some places you hear people saying that this is a just a set-up: They say the Europeans are only coming to help one candidate and evacuate Europeans when things go bad. These are two rumors that have stuck. The Europeans have to counter them and explain exactly why the troops are coming.

But an evacuation in fact is an important responsibility for the European troops.

Yes, but it's only one of several.

What things did you have on your wish list for the Europeans?

We made this clear in a letter to the EU Presidency at the end of December: We need short-term help in connection with our own mandate in order to secure the elections. The Europeans increasingly understand what this means. It means encouraging the population: "You can vote freely and we'll make sure that those elected will be able to take office." Secondly, it's a signal to all those who walk around in uniform in Kinshasa: "Stay in your barracks. There are highly equipped European soldiers who will safeguard the process. Don't let people convince you to march against the population for a losing candidate. Don't even dream about a coup." It's a two-sided mission: determent and encouragement. That's were the UN counts on Europe.

But what if the EU sends even fewer soldiers than the UN troops that are already there?

What's that supposed to mean? The UN has 15,000 soldiers in the eastern part of the country. Here in the city we only have 1,300 troops. The Europeans will be impressive enough to complete the mission.