DATE=8/16/2000 TYPE=CORRESPONDENT REPORT TITLE=U-N-CONGO (L ONLY) NUMBER=2-265561 BYLINE=BRECK ARDERY DATELINE=UNITED NATIONS CONTENT= VOICED AT: INTRO: United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan says he needs more time to study recent developments in Congo-Kinshasa. VOA Correspondent Breck Ardery reports, Mr. Annan is asking the Security Council for a brief extension of the U-N mission in Congo. TEXT: In a letter to the Council, Mr. Annan says the deployment of more than five thousand U-N troops to Congo has been prevented by continued fighting in the country and by obstructionism by the government of Congo. On Tuesday, Congo President Laurent Kabila said he would not cooperate with the deployment of the U-N troops at the present time. Mr. Annan's spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva told reporters the Secretary-General is now uncertain about the future of the current U-N observer mission in Congo that is known as MONUC. ///ALMEIDA E SILVA ACT/// In his letter he wrote, "The role that MONUC can play under current circumstances remains unclear." ///END ACT/// Because of the uncertainty, Mr. Annan wants more time to assess the situation in Congo before making formal recommendations to the Security Council. He is asking the Council to extend, until the end of September, the U-N mission in Congo to provide time for the assessment. The mission's authorization is currently scheduled to expire at the end of this month. Ever since a cease-fire agreement for Congo was reached more than a year ago, there has been talk about a U-N peacekeeping force there. But U-N officials and some members of the Security Council have been wary about making a major commitment of U-N peacekeeping resources, if fighting is continuing and there is no cooperation from the host government. In fact, some diplomats say deployment of a U-N force under those conditions could be an invitation to disaster. The conflict in Congo is complex, featuring six nations, in addition to the government of Congo, and a number of rebel groups.(Signed) NEB/UN/BA/LSF/FC 16-Aug-2000 16:20 PM EDT (16-Aug-2000 2020 UTC) NNNN Source: Voice of America .
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