To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether it is Government policy to support additional security options, including the deployment of a robust multinational force or coalition of the willing in Somalia, as suggested in the UN Secretary General’s recent report (S/2007/658). (165988)

The Government supports African Union and United Nations efforts to promote peace and security in Somalia. We have contributed financially to the current AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM), most recently to facilitate the deployment of Burundian troops. We believe that AMISOM should be succeeded by an effective UN mission, provided that the conditions on the ground are right. UN Security Council Resolution 1772 requests that planning for a UN mission takes place and that the international community work to identify actions to create the conditions that would enable deployment to take place.