Sweden plans troop contribution to EU Chad force

STOCKHOLM - Sweden plans to send 200 soldiers to join the European Union peacekeeping operation in Chad and the Central African Republic, the government said on Thursday.

The proposal is subject to parliamentary approval at a vote set for next month, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman said.

"The EU operation will provide support for the U.N.'s crisis management capability, which is one of the most important tasks of the European security and defence policy," Foreign Affairs Minister Carl Bildt said in a statement.

"The conflict in Darfur requires a unified approach to the serious humanitarian disaster that characterises the entire region -- which is why the EU operation in Chad is important."

Sweden also plans to contribute 150 troops to a joint Sweden-Norway engineering force planned for Darfur and these soldiers will be focused on building roads and bases for the hybrid African Union force.

The rifle company proposed for Chad would be authorised to use military force, Defence Ministry spokesman Michael Ostlund said.

The military operation in Chad and the Central African Republic is expected to last 12 months and the soldiers would be deployed at the start of January, the government said.