Irish soldiers will be considered a hostile force if they deploy alongside French troops as part of the EU mission to Chad, representatives of the Chadian rebel alliance have told The Irish Times ,writes Mary Fitzgerald, Foreign Affairs Correspondent.
The rebels called for Ireland to pull out of the EU force, known as EUfor, because they say its neutrality is compromised by French involvement.
France is contributing the largest number of troops to the 3,700-strong force which, though overall command is in the hands of Irish general Pat Nash in Paris, will be led on the ground by a French general. More than 400 Irish troops will take part in the UN-mandated mission which aims to protect civilians, including Darfuri refugees, in eastern Chad. The rebels say they suspect France's motives, given that French troops stationed in the country under a separate Franco-Chadian defence accord have assisted its president, Idriss Deby, in his battle against those seeking to oust him.
"If EUfor is made up of forces other than French, we don't have a problem with it," rebel spokesman Abderaman Koulamallah said by satellite phone from Chad.
"But it's a farce to believe that EUfor will be neutral when more than 50 per cent are French. If French troops take part, then we consider all soldiers from whatever European country as forces hostile to us. We will not make any distinction between the Irish and the French.
We are asking the Irish Government to abstain from sending troops to take part in this force as it stands because they risk being faced with hostility on our part." The rebels have accused France of providing tanks and helicopters to help Mr Deby - whose opponents say is dictatorial and corrupt - counter their offensive more than a week ago. More than 160 people died in fighting between government forces and rebels in Chad's capital, N'Djamena.
Mahamat Assileck Halata, a Paris-based spokesman for the rebels, said recent remarks from Mr Deby suggested the Chadian president believed EUfor would help him deal with domestic instability. "This leads us to believe there are grey areas and that a double game is being played by the French on the back of the other European nations.
A EUfor spokesman insisted it would remain strictly neutral in the conflict between Mr Deby and the rebels. "We have no intention of getting involved in internal Chadian politics," Comdt Dan Harvey said last night.
A spokeswoman for the Minister for Defence, Willie O'Dea, said Ireland's participation in EUfor was not in doubt.