STOP PRESS

EU will help Somalia

28 March 2006 

Brussels - The European Union on Tuesday promised to provide "moral, political and practical support" to Somalia as part of an international drive to help rebuild the war-torn country.

European Commission president Jose Manuel Barroso told reporters the EU remained concerned about the situation in Mogadishu following recent heavy fighting in the city between rival militias.

"We are keeping a close watch on the situation," Barroso said at a joint news conference with Abdullah Yusuf Ahmed,the president of the Somali transitional federal government and Ali Muhammad Ghedi, the country’s prime minister.

Barroso and the Somali leaders signed a so-called "memorandum of understanding" which officials said would lead to closer co-operation between the two sides and could clear the way for the country’s bid to join the Cotonou trade and co-operation agreement between the EU and African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) states.

The document would also help Somalia join the "community of nations" following almost 15 years of strife and war, Barroso said.

"We have given our assurances of moral, political and material support" to Somalia, the commission chief said, adding that the EU had mobilised €200m in aid for Somalia following implementation of the 2002 peace process.

EU development chief Louis Michel said Somalia would probably receive even more funds in the coming years. –

Sapa-dpa