NATO plans to increase support for AU force in Darfur

NATO's chief diplomat said Monday that the alliance planned to increase support for African peacekeepers in Darfur, but he again stressed that the deployment of NATO troops was not an option, AP report 4 April 2006 - excerpt:

Secretary General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said NATO was considering increasing training, planning and transportation support for the African Union peacekeeping force in Darfur, and a U.N. mission that may replace it in September.

"That can very much be done without speaking of a NATO force," he said. "It's the African Union, it's the U.N. which are the guiding organizations."