Uganda's Minister of Defense Amama Mbabazi issued a statement with a promise: the year 2002 will be the year Uganda finally destroys two rebel groups that have plagued it for years. In an interview with AFP, Mbabazi said (quote):
"I don't expect the LRA to survive beyond 2002." Mbabazi said Sudan still supports the LRA, but that support is weakening. This may be a public indication that Sudan is finally willing to implement the agreement Khartoum and Kampala reached nearly two years ago to stop supporting insurgencies in one another's country. The Ugandan government also vowed to finish off the Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) which operate in western Uganda (and has bases in the DRC). Mbabazi indicated the US-led "war on terrorism" was part of Sudan's change of heart, vis a vis the LRA.
