Kampala — AS different sectors coalesce into the regional co-operation under the ambit of the East African Co-operation, considerations to include defence are on the table.

During his address at the East African security meeting at Munyonyo in October 2009, President Yoweri Museveni called for the creation of an East-African defence force to solve conflicts and counter threats both from within and outside the region.

The call comes at a time the region is emerging from years of conflict with the only conflict left being that in Somalia.

For years Burundi was immersed in unending conflict. So was Uganda and Rwanda. Calm has returned to these once volatile countries and now stability underpins their rise from chaos. But Somalia is a powder keg which though not a member of the East African Community (EAC), poses a security threat thanks to its proximity. It is feared the conflagration there could spill over and engulf the region. Already reports have it that Al Qaeda is moving its bases into the war-torn country.

A joint East African force would effectively contain it and also be on standby for deployment to deal with any threats on the members countries. At the moment, two forces constituting the African Union Mission to Somalia are from EAC's Uganda and Burundi.

Since the re-birth of the EAC in 1999 the idea of a joint East African Brigade has featured. It is not exclusively confined to East Africa for it has the support of the African Union which is considering using regional armies to foster security on the continent.

Other regional blocks already have mechanisms for regional security. For example, the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) force played a role in solving conflicts in Liberia.

The South African Development Cooperation (SADC) has a loose military pact that saw some member countries rush troops to the DR Congo to bolster the regime against an invasion from Uganda and Rwanda in 1998.

Presidents and chiefs of defence forces of the five East African countries have unanimity on East African Joint Forces; what remains is the drawing up of the mechanism of building it.

Kenya Army (KA)

The Kenyan Armed Forces number between 40,000 and 45,000 officers and men. According to recent reports, at least 2% of GDP is spent on the army every year. It is largely a peace-time army. It has been a candidate for many a peace mission.

The army is divided into several formations. These include the infantry, the air force, the navy and paramilitaries which are better equipped than armies in the other East African countries, especially so in the transportation sector.

Kenya's army for example has over 23 transport helicopters, 37 attack choppers and 31 fixed wing transport aeroplanes.

Unlike the rest of East Africa, the Kenya army mainly uses weapons from the West, a Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) report says. This is why their main battle tank is the British Vickers MK 3, while the helicopters are mainly Hughes 500 MD, also from western Europe. The Kenyan navy has over 15 missiles and several gun boats mainly acquired from Europe. The air force is equipped with F-5 fighter planes from the US.

Uganda People's Defence Forces (UPDF)

Its numerical strength is 50,000. According to the army spokesman, Lt.Col Felix Kulayigye, the UPDF's strength grew recently following the passing out of over 9,000 officers and men at the end of 2009.

He explained that thousands of UPDF soldiers had been demobilised since the 1990s due to sickness, disability and old age.

"Our idea is to stabilise the numbers. Ideally we want UPDF to be a 50,000-man strong force," he said.

After the defence reforms between 2002 and 2006, UPDF was divided into five divisions. Each one is structured to accommodate different specialisations that include the land forces (infantry), paramiltary and commando units. The air force, navy and mechanised brigade, presidential guard brigade are constituted separately, but still under the UPDF command structure.

According to the CIA's rankings, the UPDF is the 8th most powerful army in Africa. The army has been fighting the Lord's Resistance army and other rebels for over 20 years.

Of all the five East African armies, the UPDF is perhaps the army with the most combat experience, since they have fought in Congo, the Sudan and Rwanda.

Information from the CIA and Institute of Strategic Studies says UPDF is mainly armed with eastern Europe and Chinese weapons. According to the reports, the mechanised brigade is equipped with T-55 and T-62 tanks, the artillery pieces are BM-21s, 155mm Howitzers, 122mm guns, the air force has Mig-21 and Mig-23 fighter planes, Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopter gunships and a C-130 transport plane.

Tanzanian People's Defence Forces (TPDF)

According to reliable information, its strength lies between 25,000 and 30,000. The TPDF is divided into various formations. These include the Land Forces, the Navy, the Air Force and the Military Intelligence.

Between 1971 and 1983, Tanzanian forces played a key role in the politics and military of Uganda. Because of the conflict between Idi Amin and Julius Nyerere, the two countries were for many years in a state of war. Tanzanian officers trained Ugandan exiles and equipped them fight to Amin.

In 1978, TPDF comprised the bulwark of the forces that fought and overthrew Amin. They stayed in Uganda until around 1983, when they withdrew.

The TPDF's military hardware is mainly from Russian and eastern Europe. These include BM-21s (the famed Saba Saba) 122mms, T-62 battle tanks while the air force has Mig-21 and Mig-23 fighter planes. There are also tens of SAM 3, 6 and 7 missiles for the air defence.

The Rwandese Defence Forces

The RDF came out of the RPF, which was the rebel group that came from Uganda and fought its way into power. The CIA and Institute of Strategic Studies put its strength at between 80,000 and 100,000.

Rwanda army's was born in 1990, when a group of more than 4,000 deserted Uganda's army, then called The National Resistance Army (NRA) and attacked Rwanda, subsequently toppling Juvenal Habyarimana's government. It was backed by Uganda.

The RDF is the only army in the region that can be compared to the UPDF in terms of combat experience. This is because in addition to battling their own internal insurgents it has also fought in the DRC. According to CIA rankings, the RDF is the 9th most powerful army in Africa. At 13% the RDF, comparatively, spends the highest percentage of its nation's GDP on defence.

The RDF comprises the Land Forces, the Mechanised Brigade and Air Force. They are mainly armed with Russian and Chinese weapons. Among these include several Mi-17 and Mi-24 helicopters and Russian-made artillery.

The RDF thrives on total discipline. "They are organised for a cause and always fight to realise their objective," says a military analyst. Between 1999 and 2001, they fought several bruising battles against their mentors the UPDF in the Congo.

Burundi Army

This is the smallest of all five countries. For many years, they have been battling rebels. The result of this has been the postponement of efforts to professionalise and build a national army. Burundi's army is least armed when compared to the those of the other four countries in the region. The infantry has mainly the AK-47 rifle, machine guns and mortars. There are at least two helicopters used for transport and one Mi-24 used for attack purposes.

The idea of a joint East African forces was mooted when the EA was re-established in 1999. Yoweri Museveni, the Commander-in-Chief of the Uganda armed forces his counterparts Daniel Arap Moi and Benjamin Mkapa considered the possibility at the time that the three countries should come together and jointly fight terrorism.

"We should look at the option of creating a joint force to fight terrorism because it is a threat to all of us," Museveni said.

In addition to the EAC force, there is also the Eastern Africa Standby Brigade (EASBRIG) that is partly being pushed by the African Union and the Inter-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD). The force is essentially intended to help keep peace in the region.

"This will save us from the situation like we have in Somalia where member states have pledged troops, but because of some problems they have not honoured their commitments. The establishment of the East African Standby Brigade will solve these problems," Ruth Nankabirwa, then Uganda's Minister of State for Defence, said in 2008.

Thirteen countries are already part of plans to have it by 2010.

These include Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Madagascar, Eritrea, Djibouti, Seychelles and Somalia.

The EASBRIG will form part of the five African regional armies.

Although no EAC force has been instituted formally, the five armies have been working together at least in training.

In Uganda, the Senior Staff and Command College, Kimaka is training officers from both Kenya and Tanzania. Of the recent two intakes at Kimaka for example, at least 10 Kenyan and Tanzanian officers have trained alongside their Ugandan counterparts.

The officers who have been trained include, Major R. K. Kitur and Major M R Ndirangu from Kenya, Major S. N. Mjelwa and Major C. E. Msola from Tanzania. Others are Col. Francis Chemo (Kenya) and Col. Sebastian Cherotin (Kenya), Col. R. I. Munga and Col. George Mayeku (Tanzania), Col. George Mbato and Col. E. Mwakangata from Kenya and Tanzania respectively.

At Kimaka, it does not only stop at training officers for some of the instructors at Kimaka are either Kenyan or Tanzanian officers. The instructors include Col. Erastus Kinyua, Brig. Osborn Ndunde Lwoyelo and Brig Michael Mwololo Fundi from Kenya and Col. F A Njau from Tanzania.

In Tanzania, Munduli Army College has historically trained officers and men from both Kenya and Uganda. Very many Ugandan officers, trained there as way back as the 1980s. These include Colonel Pecos Kutesa, Lt. Gen. Katumba Wamala, Major Mugumya Magulumali and many others. At the moment, at least two officers are sent to Munduli from the regional countries every year.

In Kenya, the Army colleges at Lanet and Karen also take in forces from the Uganda every year.

Some of the products include Brigadier Patrick Kankiriho, who led Operation Lightening Thunder against the LRA in Garamba, Colonel James Barigye Muhesi, Colonel S. M. Kiswiri, Lt. Col. Felix Kulayigye, Colonel S. Ocan and many others.

This level of joint training is an example of the level of co-operation that the three countries enjoy as far as military issues are concerned.

On October 23, 2007, the then Chief of Defence Forces of the Kenya Armed Forces, General Jeremiah Mutinda Kianga, visited Kimaka were he addressed officers on training at the time.

"My visit is in line with the spirit of the East African Co-operation," Kianga said.

He urged chiefs of defence forces from all the East African countries to regularly visit officers and men in training so that they acquaint themselves with the future commanders.

According to the planned structure, the force would be called the Joint East African Brigade. "Every one of the five countries would create a unit as part of the East African Brigade. The unit will, however, be based in the home country," says a source. The units will meet regularly to carry out exercises.

In 2006, the three countries forces were engaged in joint exercises, alongside US forces, mainly in humanitarian rescue and disaster management.

The exercise was code-named Natural Fire Exercise. It involved a total of 1,300 personnel who included 340 officers and men from the UPDF, over 300 Tanzanians and 400 Kenyans.

The exercise was held in the Baringo area. "This is a good exercise in as far as training of our officers in disaster management is concerned," Nankabirwa told the troops during the closing ceremony.

The 2009 edition of the exercise took place in Kitgum, northern Uganda. Six armies - US, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi - participated.

Gen. William Ward, the commander of of US Army African Command urged the East African armies to work towards promoting stability in the region other than training to respond to humanitarian crisis.

There are, however, several challenges. For effective co-operation to take place animosity amongst the armies will have to be overcome. Mistrust among each other as was the case between Uganda and Rwanda over two years ago must be overcome.

There is also need to harmonise expenditure on defence or at least have it within the agreed threshold in a bid to create parity.

Furthermore, the countries conceerned have varying military challenges. For example, Uganda is currently battling LRA rebels in the Central African Republic, DRC and Southern Sudan while Rwanda is battling remnants of the Interahamwe in the DRC. Burundi is also yet to defeat the rebels that operate witjin her boundaries. On the other hand, Kenya and Tanzania are peaceful.

"The peaceful countries might see the non-peaceful ones as odd and this may affect integration," says a UPDF officer. But overall, creating a joint EAC force is the best way forward.