For the third time in a year, Burundi troops in Somalia will maintain their positions in a country they vowed to exit 12 months ago, as it merges that protracted processes at the United Nations continue to delay the deployment of Egyptian forces that were co-opted in the African Union-led mission to replace the Burundian contingent in the new security arrangement right from the start of its five-year mandate on January 1 2025.
In December, the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) passed a resolution at its 1317th meeting, noting Egypt’s readiness to finalise the deployment of its troops, after undertaking a number of procedural steps, the latest being the pre-deployment visit by the AU, negotiations of the memorandum of understanding and a Letter of Assist with the UN.
