UNITED NATIONS, June 28 (UPI) -- The U.N. Security Council approved sending 4,200 Ethiopian troops to Sudan's disputed Abyei region as Sudan prepares to divide into two nations, diplomats said.
Diplomats said the U.N. action Monday was meant to help diffuse strain in the weeks before the southern third of Sudan declares independence July 9, The New York Times reported.
The resolution comes a week after north and south Sudanese leaders signed an accord in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia's capital, to demilitarize the oil-rich Abyei region and allow Ethiopian peacekeepers to monitor the situation. The resolution, drafted by the United States, authorizes troop deployment for a six-month period.
Diplomats told the Times the resolution gives the U.N. Interim Security Force the authority to take "necessary actions," including military force, to protect civilians or in self-defense.
