CAR leader wants training for troops

The president of Central Africa Republic called Thursday for additional training and equipment for the country’s armed forces so they can be deployed to deal with the conflict among armed groups that is leading to loss of lives “and massive destruction.”
President Faustin Archange Touadera told the Security Council on Thursday that the U.N. peacekeeping force known as MINUSCA is acting alone now because the country doesn’t have enough trained troops “to participate in actions to establish peace, pacify the country, and protect civilians.”
He said he is “worried” about the pace of training by a European Union mission that “takes a long time,” and he urged the Security Council to assist in finding faster training as well from individual countries or through multilateral co-operation.
“I’m also concerned about Central African trained forces being provided with military and logistical resources or equipment,” Touadera said. “Because we don’t have this equipment we can’t get boots on the ground, and I’m talking about in regions of the country where there are threats to peace and security against civilians and our means are lacking.”
He said about 8,000 troops can’t deploy because they don’t have the needed training and resources.