UN may request extra troops for Chad

THE UN takeover of a peacekeeping mission in Chad involving 400 Irish troops could see a request to the Government to send even more soldiers to the war-torn region.

The UN Security Council voted in New York yesterday to take over the EU-led mission by March 15. Soldier numbers under the UN, however, will be boosted from the EU force’s of 3,500 to about 5,200, as part of the resolution voted through, which includes peacekeeping in parts of the Central African Republic as well as Chad. This would mean a request for extra troops from countries on the ground, including possibly Ireland, who are the second largest contributor of troops after France.

Ireland’s overseas capacity of troops is capped at about 860. Some 756 are currently deployed abroad, including the 400 in Chad, another 200 in Kosovo and 65 in Bosnia, the defence minister’s spokeswoman confirmed last night.