At a Social Democratic party meeting Tuesday evening, Freivalds said she would propose to parliament that it agree to a UN request to send troops to join the 15,000-strong United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL), which got underway last September.

"There is broad support for this initiative," Freivalds' press secretary Anders Hagquist told AFP. "We haven't heard protests from anyone."

Last December, the Defense Department instructed the Swedish army to start preparing for possible participation in the UN peace mission, and parliament is expected to make its final decision on the matter soon.

"The formal parliamentary decision should be made very soon, since the troops are supposed to get there sometime in February," Hagquist said.

The Swedish unit is expected to join the Irish battalion in UNMIL.

The eventual 15,000-strong UN deployment from 20 countries will enforce a ceasefire between government forces and rebel factions. It will also demobilize and disarm rebels and begin reconstruction ahead of elections in

WAR.WIRE