African Military Chiefs Plan Joint Security Operations

[Eronda]

Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces and Senior Presidential Advisor for Special Operations, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, chaired the final session of the conference on Military Operations Other Than War (MOOTW) and stressed the need for joint efforts to implement the recommendations from the four-day conference.

Gen. Kainerugaba led discussions that resulted in the signing of a communiqué which recommended joint military exercises, joint training, intelligence sharing, joint border patrols, and other high-level military activities aimed at ensuring peace and security across Africa.

South Africa’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Rudzani Maphwanya, said the conference was important and that technical teams should identify practical areas for cooperation to ease implementation.

He also suggested aligning with the existing AU doctrine on Military Operations Other than War.

Tanzania’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Jacob Mukunda, thanked Gen. Kainerugaba for organizing the conference and bringing together military chiefs from across the continent.

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He however expressed concern about the “possibility of implementing the recommendations, given the continent’s size and the fact that many countries do not share common borders.”

He said he was “optimistic that a solution could be found.”

Maj. Gen. Vincent Nyakarundi, head of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) delegation, suggested that “joint exercises be arranged among small groups of countries to ensure seamless coordination and implementation.”

He pledged Rwanda’s “support for the recommendations and praised the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF) leadership for hosting the conference.”

Heads of delegation from the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Burundi and South Sudan acknowledged the importance of African militaries working together to confront current and emerging security threats.
Source: Chimp reports