Uganda welcomes its troops from Somalia, Equatorial Guinea

The Chief of Defence Forces (CDF) of the Uganda Peoples’ Defence Forces (UPDF), General David Muhoozi has applauded a group of soldiers who recently returned from foreign missions in Somalia and the Equatorial Guinea for raising the Ugandan flag high.

Muhoozi made the remarks while welcoming back a total of  248 UPDF soldiers  who were part of the second Uganda Military Training and Mentoring Team in Equatorial Guinea and 2,400 troops of Uganda’s 23rd Battle Group to Somalia at  the UPDF Peace Support Operation and Training Center in Nakaseke District.

He reminded them that the reasons for the UPDF involvement in foreign missions stem from the Pan-African spirit and the old adage that no man is an island.

“We are all human and are bound to meet both good and bad people. Bad people such as terrorists bring suffering to humanity. We must support each other against such ills,” Gen. Muhoozi said.

“Other than being human which explains our contribution to the fight against evils that affect humanity, we are Africans with same identity, same culture, same aspirations and same destiny irrespective of our nationalities. It is therefore why we ought to work together to promote our greater African interests.”

According to the Chief of Defence Forces in the UPDF, Africans are in dire need of social-economic transformation and that it can only be achieved in a peaceful environment.

“We are bound by one identity in a troubled territory called Africa whose existence we must fight for so that we can continue to exist,” he noted.

He commended the political efforts that brought about regional and continental bodies such as the East African Community and African Union that work towards the common good of the African people irrespective of colonial-generated borderlines.

“We recognize your enabling role towards the realization of the objectives of these regional and continental efforts by contributing towards peace and security, which are a perquisite for the fulfillment of the objectives of these bodies.”

The defence chief also briefed his returning troops that during their absence, Kampala Metropolitan Area was affected by a wave of crime such as murders, kidnaps and robberies but noted that the situation was handled well.

“We acted within our constitutional mandate to support civil authorities and we would like to inform you that our operation to arrest the situation has been a big success so far,” he noted.

He said the UPDF has many unique capabilities that it can use to support civil authorities in time of need saying, “We are now organized into four services to ably accomplish all our core roles as stipulated in the constitution.”

The UPDF recently deployed its 26^th battle group to Somalia under African Union Mission in Somalia and the third Military Training and Mentoring Team to Equatorial Guinea.

UPDF also deploys a United Nations Guard Unit in Somalia.

Uganda was the first country to deploy troops under the AMISOM to Somalia in 2007 and have done a tremendous job in turning around the country that was once referred to as a mission dead on arrival.

Uganda is also currently the largest troop contributor of the 22,000 strong AMISOM force, contributing roughly 80 percent of the number.

The Ugandan troops control the largest area in Somalia after being  deployed in Sector One in Benadir,(has 16 districts) Banadir, and Lower Shabelle regions having pushed Al Shabaab militants for over 200km away from Mogadishu city.

UPDF guards the Somali parliament, airport, UN offices and other key government installations in Somalia.