The Monitor (Kampala)
Badru D. Mulumba
3 May 2004
State House — President Museveni has signalled that the UPDF is ready to go into Burundi. Burundi's civil war has left an estimated 300,000 people dead since 1993.
Addressing a joint press conference with his Burundian counterpart Domitien Ndayizeye at State House at the weekend, Mr Museveni, the chairman of the Burundi Peace Summit, however said that sending troops to Burundi would have to be agreed with regional leaders.
"Everything should be done to support [Burundi]," Museveni said when The Monitor asked him if he would send troops to Burundi. "For Uganda, we want to be able to support them for anything that the region agrees upon."
A peace deal brokered a year ago paved the way for elections, but Burundi's transition government warns that plans for elections could be scuttled because some 20,000 former combatants are still armed and could easily resume war.
Asked by a BBC journalist about reports that Rwanda has placed troops along Burundi's border areas, Mr Ndayizeye said: "There are very good relations between Burundi and Rwanda."
He added that the Rwandan troops are meant to intercept Interahamwe.
"Secondly, Rwanda is afraid about Interahamwe coming from DRC and they think that some elements from DRC are passing through [Kibila]," he said.
"So in our case, we have no fear." Ndayizeye said that he was happy with the conduct of the principal sides in the conflict. Twenty-three groups have accepted the peace deal paving way for elections next October.
"But I am not satisfied with FNL," he said. "They talk of a truce, but still they don't want to get engaged in dialogue." Museveni said that the Burundi Peace Summit would decide what to do with the obstinate rebels.
"At one time, [former President Pierre] Buyoya was difficult. He did not want to negotiate and we put him under sanctions," Museveni said. "If we can put sanctions on a government in power, why [not FNL]?"
(Due to some technical problems, the largest part of this story was not run yesterday, necessitating a re-run. ED)
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