Don’t Leave Chad Hanging

Here’s another one for the “we hope the Obama administration takes a more nuanced approach to foreign policy” file. A coalition of organizations recently released a set of policy recommendations on how the United States can better address the crisis in Chad. Their recommendations largely echo what Enough has long been arguing—that although the violence in eastern Chad is in part a spillover from neighboring Darfur, Chad is mired in its own unique political crisis, and the international community needs to be much smarter in developing a practical roadmap toward lasting stability in Chad. My colleagues Omer Ismail and Maggie Fick recently had some good ideas on how to make United Nations peacekeeping more effective in Chad.  As we enter ‘rebellion season’ in Chad—when the rains end and rebels gear up for another mad dash to the capital, N’Djamena,—policymakers would be wise to take these recommendations to heart.

• Eastern Chad