From: Biniam Tekle (biniamt@dehai.org)
Date: Fri Aug 07 2009 - 09:42:41 EDT
To view the interview with PIA click on this link:
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1184614595?bctid=32467887001
US pledges military aid to Somalia
Updated on 06 August 2009
By Jonathan Rugman
The US throws its weight behind Somalia's fragile government - 16 years
after American soldiers were killed in Mogadishu in a battle that inspired
the film Black Hawk Down.
At that time, Bill Clinton was president. Today his wife, Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton, met Somalia's President in Nairobi, promising military aid
as the government takes on Islamist militants.
In an interview with this programme, the president of neighbouring Eritrea
defended the militants.
But Ms Clinton said action would be taken if Eritrea continued interfering
in Somalia.
She made the announcement during talks in Kenya with Somali President Sheikh
Sharif Ahmed, whose administration is battling hard-line Islamist militants,
including the al-Shabaad insurgent group.
Ms Clinton said: "It is fair to say that President Obama and I want to
expand and extend our support for the transitional federal government."
Australian police announced earlier this week they had uncovered a plot to
attack a Sydney army base by men they said had links to al-Shabaab.
Ms Clinton said the presence of "terrorist elements" in Somalia posed a
threat to Africa and beyond.
She added: "With respect to Eritrea, we are making it very clear that their
actions are unacceptable ... and we intend to take action if they do not
cease."
"We are with Somali resistance"
In an interview with Channel 4 News Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki
defended Somalia's militants saying that as his country supported all
Somalis it would be a "mistake" to limit this support to "one or two
groups."
"We support all resistance from anyone in Somalia," he said.
"Somalis have worked with outside forces for money for fame for what have
you. They have collaborated with outsiders, we are against collaborators -
we are with Somalis."
"You may not agree with the ideology of al-Shabaab, Somalis may not agree
with the ideology of al-Shabab but it’s up to them to have their own
ideology. You need to respect their choice.
"Categorising anyone political group as terrorist isn’t qualified as a
common understanding of that qualification. Now, anyone in any government
will call an opposition a terrorist organisation."
Mr Afwerki claimed that the United States and its allies had "created a
situation of chaos in Somalia by providing weapons" to warlords but that he
didn't think a culture of blame was the solution.
"I wish we had the resource and we had the ability to support Somali
resistance in any way. Physically, it hasn’t been possible. Theoretically,
we may want to see that happen.
"We don’t want to get into this cycle of accusations and counter-accusations
on who’s being supplying this or that faction in Somalia for the last 20
years.
"We would like resistance to succeed in Somalia and Somalis to be left alone
to find a solution for their own problems without an external intervention.
"If you agree to that, pull out from Somalia. Don’t supply weapons to
warlords. Don’t divide and weaken Somalia. You leave Somalia to Somalis and
Somalis will find a solution for themselves. As long as this conflict
continues, we remain supportive of the resistance in Somalia in any form."
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