Eritrea slams UN for extending peace mission mandate
AFP - February 2, 2008

Eritrea has slammed the UN Security Council for extending the mandate of a peacekeeping mission along its disputed border with arch-foe Ethiopia, according to the foreign ministry.

The council unanimously adopted Wednesday a resolution extending the mandate of the force known as UNMEE until July 31 and urged the rivals to "show maximum restraint and refrain from any threat or use of force against each other."

Eritrea said the extension failed to tackle the root cause of the problem -- the continued presence of Ethiopian troops on land ruled by a UN-appointed border panel as Eritrean territory.

"The government of Eritrea has been repeatedly urging the Security Council to shoulder its legal and moral responsibilities to ensure the withdrawal of the army and institutions of the Ethiopian regime from the occupied territories," the Eritrean foreign ministry said in a statement late Friday.

As such, extension "will not serve the cause of peace and security in our region," the statement claimed.

Eritrea sees the UN as serving US interests, claiming Washington favours its ally Ethiopia in the dispute ...