UNITED NATIONS – Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is recommending a 15 percent reduction in the number of U.N. troops in Haiti and an examination of whether a peacekeeping operation is still the best way to support the impoverished Caribbean nation.
In a report to the U.N. Security Council circulated Tuesday, Ban said he intends to discuss with Haiti's government and member states the best way for the U.N. to continue contributing to "greater stability and development in the country."
Ban said he will explore the option of replacing the peacekeeping mission, known as MINUSTAH, "with a smaller, more focused assistance mission by 2016" and include proposals on the way forward in his next report in March 2014.
In the meantime, he recommended reducing MINUSTAH's military strength from 6,270 to 5,021 by June 2014.
