US says will increase troops in Haiti

Thu, 21 Jan 2010

Amid growing concerns of Latin American leaders over the presence of the US military in Haiti, Washington plans to send 4,000 troops to the quake-hit country.

A statement from the US Second Fleet Wednesday stated that the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Admiral Michael Mullen, has made the decision to dispatch the troops.

The 2,000 sailors and 2,000 marines are from the Nassau Amphibious Ready Group and the 24th Marine Expeditionary Unit, according to the statement. Their deployment will increase the number of US troops in Haiti to above 15,000.

Three amphibious ships, the USS Nassau, the USS Mesa Verde and the USS Ashland, will support the latest mission, bringing the total number of US Navy and Military Sealift Command vessels to 20.

A 7.0-magnitude quake struck Haiti last week, killing at least 75,000 people and perhaps as many as 200,000. Almost 250,000 people were injured and around 1.5 million people are without shelter.

Meanwhile, the presence of the US military, which has taken command of distribution of humanitarian aid, has raised the ire of some South American leaders, with the presidents of Bolivia, Nicaragua and Venezuela condemning the US role.

Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega said Haiti seeks "humanitarian aid, not troops."

Venezuela's Hugo Chavez accused the US of seeking to occupy the quake-stricken nation. "The United States government is using a humanitarian tragedy to militarily occupy Haiti. I read somewhere that they even occupied the [presidential] palace."

Bolivian leader Evo Morales said that he would seek UN condemnation of the “US military occupation.”

In Europe, France spoke out against the US role, demanding the United Nations investigate and clarify the US military presence in Haiti.

Three days after the quake, US paratroopers from the 82nd Airborne Division took control of the main airport in the capital Port-au-Prince.

The US says its primary mission is to speed distribution of aid, in part by providing security at distribution points and escorting aid convoys.

In the past, Washington has been accused of interfering in Haitian internal affairs on many occasions. The US military played a role in the departure of the former President Jean-Bertrand Aristide before his second term was over in early 2004.

Source: PressTV.
Link: http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=116684§ionid=351020706.