* Somalia “as big a threat to security as Afghanistan”

* Conflict has direct bearing on global security-Ban

* U.N. still considering request for peacekeepers

ADDIS ABABA, Jan 31 (Reuters) - The worsening crisis in Somalia is as big a threat to global security as Afghanistan but is being ignored by the world, delegates told an African Union summit on Sunday.

Somalia`s U.N.-backed transitional government is fighting an Islamist insurgency and has been hemmed into a few streets of the capital Mogadishu.

An African Union (AU) peacekeeping force of 5,000, provided by Burundi and Uganda, is struggling to hold back the rebels. The AU has repeatedly asked for U.N. peacekeepers to bolster its efforts but has only been given funding.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon attended the AU`s annual summit in the Ethiopian capital Addis Ababa on Sunday and again failed to pledge peacekeepers.

“In Somalia, recent events have tragically shown that the conflict has a direct bearing on global security,” Ban told about 30 African leaders.

Later at a news briefing, Ban said the United Nations was still considering “whether conditions are right for a peacekeeping operation.”

Violence in Somalia has killed 21,000 civilians since the start of 2007 and uprooted 1.5 million people, a contributing cause of one of the world`s worst humanitarian emergencies.

PIRACY

Heavily armed pirates from the lawless Horn of Africa nation are terrorising shipping lanes in the Indian Ocean and strategic Gulf of Aden, which links Europe to Asia.

Ramtane Lamamra, AU Commissioner for Peace and Security said Somalia was now as big a threat to global security as Afghanistan and should not be ignored.

“The international terrorism is the same and there is the link to the same mother organisation, al Qaeda,” Lamamra said. “And there is also piracy.”

Spanish Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero told delegates he admired the work of the AU in Somalia but that it was not “sufficient.”

“If we do not support the transitional government more, Somalia could become a place that could destroy humanity,” Zapatero said in Spanish.

“The proper response is a strong response from the international community, led by the U.N. Somalia is suffering.”

Al Qaeda`s Yemen-based branch became a global security priority after it said it was behind a failed Dec. 25 attack on a U.S. airliner, and concerns have been raised about its ties to Somalia`s al Shabaab militants.

The West has said it is concerned Somalia could turn into an al Qaeda training camp and launch pad for international attacks, a role played by Afghanistan in the run-up to the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States in 2001.

Delegates will discuss Somalia alongside the conflict in Sudan and Africa`s four coups this year at the three-day summit that ends on Tuesday.

(Additional reporting by Duncan Miriri; Editing by Janet Lawrence)

© 2010 Reuters Limited

Ousted Chairman Gaddafi snipes at African Union
Barry Malone and Duncan Miriri Addis Ababa
The Guardian
February 01, 2010

 
The new African Union (AU) Chairman and Malawian President Bingu wa Mutharika attends the summit in Ethiopia`s capital Addis Ababa, January 31, 2010.

The Libyan leader, Muammar Gaddafi, failing in his bid to stay on as chairman of the African Union for another year, accused the pan-African grouping yesterday of “tiring” him with long meetings, while failing to meet global challenges.

On the first day of a summit in Addis Ababa, Malawi`s president, Bingu wa Mutharika, was selected to succeed Gaddafi, even though diplomats said the Libyan leader wanted another term.

Gaddafi used his farewell speech to again urge African leaders to begin the process of political unification, which was a large part of his agenda during his chairmanship. He also criticised the AU for “tiring” him with long meetings and making declarations and reports without consulting him.

Referring to “really useless” meetings that lasted long into the night, he said: “It was like we were building a new atomic bomb or something.”

“The world`s engine is turning into seven or 10 countries and we are not aware of that,” said Gaddafi, dressed in a white robe and black fur hat. “The EU is becoming one country and we are not aware of it. We have to get united to be united. Let`s be united today.”

An African unity government is a goal of the AU`s founding charter and Gaddafi, supported by leaders such as Senegal`s Abdoulaye Wade, has been pushing for union for years, saying it is the only way Africa can develop without western interference. But members, led by South Africa and Ethiopia, argue the plan is impractical and would infringe on sovereignty.

The Malawian leader promised to make battling hunger a priority. “Africa is not a poor continent, but the people are poor,” Mutharika said. “Achieving food security should address the problem.” In recent years, Malawi has enjoyed bumper harvests after introducing a fertiliser and seed subsidy programme.

© Copyright 2010. The Guardian. All rights reserved.

No longer just a mad rush for African oil
ODAY (Singapore)
TDAYSG
February 01, 2010

ADDIS ABABA (Ethiopia) — China, often accused of being concerned only with Africa`s oil, is building, free of charge, the edifice that will house the continent`s political headquarters for decades to come. While China`s ties with Africa are often characterised as a mad rush to secure resources to fuel its energy-hungry economy, the Asian giant is working on erecting the symbol that was missing for its relations with the continent.

As Africa`s leaders gather in Addis Ababa for their annual meeting at the African Union`s headquarters, they can see the site where hundreds of Chinese workers and Ethiopian workers are building the structure that should host their summits in two years` time. The 53-member AU headquarters will have 23 floors and 500 offices, making it the tallest building in the Ethiopian capital. The compound will house an auditorium that can accommodate up to 2,550 guests, a huge conference room and two helicopter landing pads.

China, on the brink of becoming the world`s second largest economy, is often criticised for lavishing no-strings-attached projects on Africa in a way that is reminiscent of the continent`s colonial history with the West. At the recent China-Africa summit in Egypt, China pledged US$10 billion in low-cost loans for the continent`s development over the next three years. China, which is building political institutions in several other African countries, argues it is not in the business of lecturing on human rights and good governance, treating Africa as an equal partner. Beijing`s detractors retort that the initial mercantilist approach conceals more political intentions which have not been fully revealed yet. Trade between China and Africa grew tenfold in ten years to reach US$107 billion in 2008, and China`s investments on the continent rival those of major international financial institutions