UN to pull 2,000 Congo troops by June 30: France

By Thomas Hubert

KISANGANI, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - The United Nations will pull 2,000 peacekeepers out of Congo by end-June but propose that the remaining 20,000 leave only when security improves, France's ambassador to Congo said on Monday.

Congo wants the U.N. to begin winding down the force known as MONUC by June 30, when the vast central African state will mark the 50th anniversary of independence from Belgium, aiming to show the world it is putting its painful past behind it.

But U.N. officials have warned a hasty pullout could undermine humanitarian efforts and lead to an escalation of rebel violence against civilians.

"We are going to answer the Congolese government's demand for a progressive withdrawal of MONUC," French envoy Pierre Jacquemot told Reuters in an interview.

"This will take the form of the withdrawal of 2,000 troops by June 30, and then a progressive disengagement based on the evolution of the security risk facing the country."

Jacquemot said the United Nations was likely to propose that those security risks and benchmarks for further withdrawal be assessed by a joint U.N.-Congo commission.

The full proposal will be delivered to President Joseph Kabila's goverment by a French-led delegation of the United Nations Security Council during a visit on May 15, pending approval of all the members of the delegation, he said.

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