Africa FMs discuss agenda of 25th African Union summit
Foreign ministers of the African Union (AU) have attended a preliminary meeting to set the agenda of the 54-nation bloc’s upcoming summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Press TV reports.
The AU Executive Council, comprised of the union’s top diplomats, is discussing the existing challenges to peace and security in the African continent during the two-day meeting, which kicked off earlier on Thursday.
The council’s talks come ahead of the 25th Ordinary Session of the AU Assembly, which will be held on June 14 and 15, with African heads of state in attendance.
The African continent is currently grappling with a number of conflicts, particularly in the Central African Republic, Mali, Libya and South Sudan.
The deadly crisis in South Sudan is expected to be among the main topics on the agenda of the council’s talks. The African foreign ministers will discuss the avenues of encouraging the failed peace talks between the government of President Salva Kiir and rebel leader Riek Machar.
The council is also expected look into the crisis in Burundi, which has witnessed widespread protest rallies against an attempt by President Pierre Nkurunzinza to run for a third term.
The AU foreign ministers will also tackle the issue of illegal immigration in the continent as a series of xenophobic attacks in South Africa has raised concerns over the possible spread of such incidents to other African states.
Zimbabwe Foreign Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi, who chairs the Executive Council, has said that the participants in the event will emphasize the need for African states to fully finance the African Union’s peacekeeping missions in the coming years in order to reduce dependence on foreign aid.
Meanwhile, other African states such as Kenya and Somalia are also anticipating that the council will give priority to cross-border attacks by the Somalia-based al-Shabab militants.
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