Burundi rejects AU force deployment

Burundi has rejected a 5,000 member peacekeeping mission the African Union said last week it would send to the country amid fears it is sliding back towards civil war. Burundi’s National Security Council (NSC) — including President Pierre Nkurunziza and his entire cabinet rejected the proposed force on Tuesday.  A day earlier, the Burundian parliament […]

Burundi has rejected a 5,000 member peacekeeping mission the African Union said last week it would send to the country amid fears it is sliding back towards civil war.
Burundi’s National Security Council (NSC) — including President Pierre Nkurunziza and his entire cabinet rejected the proposed force on Tuesday.  A day earlier, the Burundian parliament said it would be considered an invasion force.
Foreign Minister Alain Nyamitwe criticized the African Union for not consulting his government before deciding on sending peacekeepers.
“The decision of the Peace and Security Council contained a provision by which the government of the Republic of Burundi has to have a say in the deployment of those troops. In reality the decision itself was that the government of the Republic of Burundi was to be by the AU, but it has not happened and we do regret it so very much because it is contrary to good diplomatic practices,” he said.