CONGRESSIONAL RECORD SENATE PAGE S8954 Sept. 5, 2006 AFRICAN UNION Mr. FEINGOLD. Mr. President, the African Union is essential to the political and economic development of Africa’s diverse community of States. It has become clear that the AU represents a real commitment by its members to establishing a forum for political dialogue and to address the challenges and seize opportunities that are arising throughout the continent.

The AU plays three very specific roles that I will highlight as we consider the nomination of the United States’ first ambassador and as we renew our efforts to strengthen our relationship with the AU.

The AU is primed to serve as the primary forum for establishing peace and preventing conflict throughout the continent. I applaud the efforts of the leaders of the AU to establish a true capacity to prevent and end conflict that has devastated many parts of the continent for too long. The creation of the Peace and Security Council, PSC, within the AU is particularly valuable, and I hope this organ within the AU develops sufficient capacity to deal with the full range of conflict throughout the continent. It is essential that the PSC complete its work in developing a series of early warning systems and indicators so that it can be effective in preventing conflict. It also must develop a real capacity to respond to conflict should one occur. The Panel of the Wise, too, is an important source of moral authority and opportunity for prominent African leaders to engage in country-specific conflicts without sacrificing neutrality or threatening the sovereignty of a nation.

As we have learned from recent years in places such as Sudan and Somalia, it is critical that there be a way to identify, understand, and respond to the conditions that breed instability.
The United States should support this conflict prevention and resolution capacity and work closely with the AU to identify weaknesses or shortfalls that exist in maximizing the AU’s ability to fulfill these important functions.

The United States must also support the AU’s efforts to establish an African Standby Force that can participate in peace operations, intervention, and conflict monitoring. The AU and its members have proven a willingness and commitment to contributing military forces to AU-flagged missions throughout the continent. AU forces are operational in Darfur and in Burundi and have proven that they are willing to take on challenging assignments in nonpermissive environments. Unfortunately, the AU still does not have the capacity to fully implement the vision for the African Standby Force, nor to effectively complete its mission in Darfur.

The United States should assist the AU in developing a professional, deployment-ready standby force that can respond to conflict and that can participate in interventions to establish peace in areas already facing conflict. We must continue our efforts to help African militaries develop their capacity, while also urging the importance of the respect for human rights, civilian leadership, and fighting corruption.

Finally, the AU is playing an increasingly important role in defeating terrorist networks throughout the African continent. As terrorist networks exploit undergoverned or unstable areas throughout Africa, the AU can play an important role in helping member States develop internal capacity to defeat the conditions that allow terrorists to take root. The AU also can strengthen member-State networks to share information, best practices, and even capacity as it relates to understanding, and ultimately defeating, terrorist networks. The African Center for the Study and Research on Terrorism, ACSRT, a joint AU Commission/PSC structure, was launched in 2004 but lacks sufficient capacity to carry out its broad mission. It is a good first step, but it will need assistance from the United States, the European Union, and other members of the international community. Establishing this capacity must also be a priority for the AU’s member states.

There are a range of other challenges facing the AU, and there is no doubt a long list of priorities to be addressed. And while the United States has and will continue to support a range of AU efforts, it is essential that the U.S. Government structure its assistance to the AU to help empower it as an organization, support its priorities, and help to develop an internal capacity to plan for its growth and role in the coming years. I hope that the fact that we are sending our first ambassador to the AU will represent a heightened level of engagement with the AU and a renewed commitment to helping the AU, its member states, and the people of the African continent address the challenges of the 21st century.

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