NAIROBI, Kenya - U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton on Thursday pledged to expand American support for Somalia's weak interim government and threatened sanctions against neighboring Eritrea for aiding an extremist group she says is trying to launch worldwide terrorist attacks from Somalia.
Clinton said the Obama administration would boost military supplies and other aid to the Somali government and an African peacekeeping force supporting it. She did not detail the new aid.
Clinton warned Eritrea, accused by the U.S. of supporting the extremist Somali militia known as al-Shabab, that it would face penalties if it continues to supply the group with arms.
"It is long past time for Eritrea to cease and desist its support for al-Shabab," she said. "We are making it very clear that their actions are unacceptable. We intend to take action if they do not cease."
At the State Department, spokesman Robert A. Wood added that Eritrea was
providing weapons and
other support to al-Shabab "and we want them to
stop."
The spokesman declined to specify what kind of sanctions the administration might impose on Eritrea.
Clinton said that al-Shabab sees "Somalia as a future haven for global terrorism," and noted the recent arrests of four men allegedly linked to the group who are suspected of plotting
attacks in Australia.
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