The UN has begun talks with Democratic Republic of Congo on withdrawing its peacekeeping mission – the biggest UN operation in the world.

UN peacekeeping chief Alain Le Roy said his officials would take a month to assess how the pullout of 20,500 personnel could be carried out.

The current mandate of the mission, known as Monuc, expires in May. UN troops have a mixed record in DR Congo, with accusations of sex abuse, gold smuggling and running from rebels. The peacekeepers were first sent to the country in 1999 in a bid to calm a raging conflict dubbed “Africa’s first world war”.

From BBC News. To read the full article click HERE.