To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs what assessment has been made of the merits of establishing a UN force for Somalia; and what the UK policy is on the matter. (143779)

The Government strongly support the current African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) but also support the need for the UN Security Council to consider fully the merits of establishing a UN force in Somalia, to succeed AMISOM. We sponsored UN Security Council Resolution 1744, adopted unanimously by the Security Council on 20 February, and fully supported the Council’s Presidential Statement of 30 April. Both emphasised the need to consider establishing a UN force in Somalia to succeed AMISOM and requested the Secretary-General to undertake contingency work and prepare options for the Security Council to consider. We expect the Secretary-General to report back to the Council within the next month, after which we will assess the merits of a force, in consultation with our UN partners. We supported this approach as Co-Chairman of the International Contact Group for Somalia when it met in London on 6 June.