LONDON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - The European Union would send troops to the Democratic Republic of Congo as a last resort if the existing United Nations force needs to be reinforced and diplomatic peace efforts fail, a British minister said on Saturday. In an interview with BBC Radio, Foreign Office minister Mark Malloch-Brown said that while the idea of the EU deploying soldiers was only a contingency, the bloc would not "stand back and watch violence erupt". The EU has already said it might fly in aid to thousands of displaced civilians in eastern Congo, where an offensive by Tutsi rebels has raised fears of a return to all-out war in the border area with Rwanda. "We have certainly got to have it as an option which is developed and on the table if we need it," Malloch-Brown said. "But frankly, the first line of call on this should be redeployment of the U.N.'s own troops from elsewhere in the country. "They could get there much quicker. They are already equipped and familiar with the situation and have the logistic support." An estimated one million people have been displaced in North Kivu province on the border with Rwanda by two years of violence that has persisted despite the end of a 1998-2003 war in the vast, former Belgian colony. "We are doing the contingency planning in case it becomes necessary, but it is not at the moment our lead priority. The lead priority is to get a political solution," Malloch-Brown added. "The idea of a European force is very much at the back line and a contingency that we hope will not need to be drawn on." French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and British Foreign Secretary David Miliband left on Friday on a mission to Congo and Rwanda, which accuse each other of backing rebel groups involved in the Congo violence. (Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by Caroline Drees)
European Union Aid Commissioner Louis Michel addresses the media in Kigali October 31, 2008. Michel is in Rwanda for talks with President Paul Kagame after visiting Democratic Republic of Congo's President ...
