Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni appealed on Sunday for more international support to bolster the African Union force in Somalia during a brief visit to the capital Mogadishu.
Museveni met President Sheikh Sharif Ahmed at the airport along with Somalia's new Prime Minister Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed and some members of a fresh, streamlined cabinet that was approved by parliament on Saturday.
"We want more troops, from Uganda or from anywhere in Africa. Uganda is a country of 33 million people so we could mobilise 3 million people. But who will pay for it?" said Museveni, who faces a presidential election in February.
"International support is not enough. They don't take the Somali problem seriously," said the former rebel, who visited Mogadishu wearing combat fatigues.
Uganda and Burundi provide all the 7,200 African Union soldiers in Mogadishu propping up a Western-backed government that has failed to stamp its authority on much more than a slice of the capital.
Two hardline Islamist insurgent groups control the rest of Mogadishu and much of southern and central Somalia. The African Union troops have so far prevented the rebels from toppling the weak government by defending key sites.
"I came to check on our troops and also to consult his excellency (President Ahmed). I am very pleased they formed a new government, have a new Prime Minister and are united. Our troops' morale is very high."
Reuters Sunday Nation
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