Africa-Press – Mozambique. The European Union (EU) on Wednesday described as “exemplary” the interaction with Mozambique for the deployment of the mission to train special troops to fight in Cabo Delgado, a region in the north of the country targeted by armed attacks.
“Mozambique is an exemplary case in terms of how the EU reacted to the request for assistance, Portuguese Major General Herminio Maio, Deputy Director of the EU’s Military Planning and Conduct Capability said today in Maputo.
He was speaking during the launch ceremony for the EU Training Mission (EUTM) which will train 11 companies (at least 1,100 troops) of special forces (commandos and marines) for two years.
“The scenarios are very different” from those the Portuguese officer has already dealt with in similar training operations in the Central African Republic, Somalia and Mali – where there is activity extended to Burkina Faso and Niger.
“There are very relevant political and security components” in each country, but in Mozambique, despite the insurgency in the northern province of Cabo Delgado lasting since 2017, there are “conditions to fulfil the mission in the two years, as defined, and be successful”.
Over the 24 months – with the possibility of extension at the end – “there are lessons” that are being identified and that serve to adapt the training in order to “better prepare the Mozambican forces to act on the ground”.
This is what the EU calls “non-executive monitoring”.
“We have the EU mandate, we are a training mission. We are not a mission to participate in operations,” he stressed.
The companies of marines trained in Maputo, as well as commandos prepared in Chimoio every four months, will then move on to the military front in Cabo Delgado, so Herminio Maio hopes to see the training begin to translate into “an improvement in the situation” in the province – which has already been seen, since July, combat support from troops from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Rwanda.
The aim is that “these [Mozambican] forces make a difference, that they have an operational added value on the ground”, able to “act autonomously under Mozambican command and in a sustained manner, according to EU standards”.
Combat training will be complemented with a strong component on human rights and protection of civilians, namely children and young people – not only in the face of armed enemies, but also in the scenario of disasters, such as cyclones and floods, which hit the country cyclically.
In addition to training, the EU includes, for the first time, “a set of assistance measures with the supply of non-lethal military equipment to units of the Mozambique armed and defence forces (FADM),” he said.
The assistance was provided through a “significant” financial effort by the new European Peace Facility (EPF) to ensure an “essential” link between “training on the one hand and, on the other, the equipment of the respective units ready for operations” in Cabo Delgado, he said.
Common costs for EUTM Mozambique, to be covered through the new European Peace Facility (EPF), are estimated at 15 million euros over the two-year period, including non-lethal equipment.
An urgent tranche of four million was released in July to provide the necessary material for the training of the first two companies, which is now getting underway, to last four months.
Cabo Delgado province is rich in natural gas but terrorised by armed rebels, with some attacks claimed by the extremist group Islamic State.
Since July, an offensive by government troops with support from Rwanda, later joined by the Southern African Development Community (SADC), allowed for increased security, recovering several areas where there was a rebel presence, including the town of Mocímboa da Praia, which had been occupied since August 2020.
