A UN Security Council delegation travels to South Africa on the first stop of a

A U. N. Security Council delegation travels to South Africa on the first stop of a nine - nation African tour aimed at bolstering peace efforts in the central Great Lakes region. The 12- member delegation, led by France’s U. N. Ambassador Jean David Levitte, is expected in Pretoria Wednesday and plans to meet South African President Thabo Mbeki Thursday. Talks will focus on the conflicts in Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The U. N. Ambassadors also plan to meet former Presidents Ketumile Masire of Botswana and Nelson Mandela of South Africa. Mr. Masire is a negotiator in the Congolese conflict while Mr. Mandela has led efforts to end Burundi’s eight-year-old civil war. Ambassador Levitte said Monday the size of a U. N. force already in Congo could increase depending on how the warring parties implement the disarmament and withdrawal process.  In March, the United Nations began deploying soldiers in Congo to monitor a comprehensive ceasefire agreement. Following their talks in South Africa, the delegation will visit Zambia, Tanzania, and all countries involved in the regions conflicts. The Congolese war began in 1998 when Rwanda, Uganda and Burundi gave military backing to rebels opposed to the Kinshasa govern- merit. Congolese President Joseph Kabila has the support of Namibia, Angola and Zimbabwe. A peace accord signed one year later in Lusaka never really took hold.