Belgium funds Burundi peace

Belgium has pledged $5m towards a peacekeeping force for Burundi.

The Belgian prime minister, Guy Verhofstadt, told the visiting former South African president, Nelson Mandela, that he would ask the rest of the European Union to contribute a further $17m.

Mr Mandela is the chief mediator in the Burundi civil war. He said he hoped South Africa would send seven-hundred troops to Burundi, but Pretoria has yet to agree to his request.

The two men agreed that a protection force was needed to ensure calm in Burundi as political factions prepared to join in a transitional government next month.

Mr Verhofstadt, country currently holds the EU presidency, and he said the EU would not neglect the needs of Africa despite the efforts being made to counter international terrorism.