Central African Republic to bring forward elections to 2014: PM

Reuters
Central African Republic's Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye, seen during an interview with Reuters in Paris where he urged the immediate deployment of French troops and an African peacekeeping force (MISCA), following the approval of a U.N. resolution, December 5, 2013. REUTERS/Jacky Naegelen

BANGUI (Reuters) - Central African Republic will bring forward its presidential election to next year, Prime Minister Nicolas Tiangaye said on Thursday, bowing to pressure from former colonial power France to speed up the transition after a March coup. The rule of interim President Michel Djotodia, the leader of the Seleka rebels who seized power in March, was originally set to last until 2015, under a deal hammered out with regional African powers. "The national electoral authority has been put in place and members will be sworn in by the end of this week, or early next," Tiangaye said after meeting U.S. ambassador to the United Nations Samantha Powers, who visited Bangui on Thursday. "They will be in charge of preparation and organization of the election, which will take place in 2014," he said. (Reporting by Bate Felix; Writing by Emma Farge; Editing by Daniel Flynn)