The initiative is focused on training and is an EU mission, with Portugal the lead member state. Mozambique is a former Portuguese colony.

The Council of the European Union, one of two legislative bodies within the EU (the other being the European Parliament), established the EU Training Mission (EUTM) Mozambique, which replicates similar initiatives focused on Mali, Somalia and the Central African Republic, on July 12 following a request for assistance made by the country's president, Filipe Nyusi, just over a month earlier.

The mission aims to support the development of the military capabilities of the Mozambican armed forces to enable the country to respond effectively to the crisis in Cabo Delgado, in the north of the country, BNS reports.

The mission will focus on training and advising the government armed forces at all levels, and on the development of military command structures and mechanisms for a rapid reaction force.

The defense ministry has sent out a draft on the issue for approval, while the Riigikogu will need to vote in favor of the move for it to become fact.

The explanatory memorandum to the draft says that two EDF personnel, one instructor and one staff officer, will be deployed, at a cost of just over €88,000 earmarked from next year's budget, BNS reports.

The ministry also recently said that an existing EDF contribution to French counter-terrorism activity in the West African nation of Mali will be extended into neighboring Niger; the French Operation Barkhane covers both countries as well as several others in the Sahel region.

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