WASHINGTON, March 4 (UPI) -- The United States Friday welcomed the establishment of a transitional government for Somalia after years of lawlessness and civil strife.
"We urge the transitional federal government to quickly address the challenging tasks of relocating to Somalia," a U.S. State Department statement issued in Washigton said.
Somalia's transitional government was formed last year after two years of peace talks and was initially based in Kenya because of lack of security at home.
Last month, Somalia's transitional Cabinet asked the African Union and Arab League to send between 5,000 and 7,500 troops with a one-year mandate to protect the government as it organizes a police force and army.
But the State Department warned not to bring troops from neighboring countries as it "could pose an insurmountable obstacle to the transitional government's ability to gain the support and trust of the Somali people."
Somalia was plunged into tribal war after the Siad Barre regime was ousted in January 1991. Toward the end of the senior Bush administration, the United States sent approximately 25,000 troops to Somalia but withdrew after 18 U.S. Rangers were killed in a firefight in Mogadishu on Oct. 3, 1993.
