Security minister says Burkina Faso taking steps to ensure 'own safety' Paris AFP (World Service) in English 1206 GMT 14 Nov 02 AGENCE FRANCE PRESSE Thursday, November 14, 2002 (Transcribed Text) OUAGADOUGOU, Nov 14 (AFP) - Burkina Faso's Security Minister Djibril Bassole has denied that his country has supplied arms to rebels controlling almost half of Ivory Coast, local press reports said Thursday. "I assure all Burkinabes and friends of Burkina Faso that our country has not helped to arm the Ivorian rebels," the minister told the Sidwaya newspaper. Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo has since the start of the rebellion on September 19 accused a "foreign country" of helping the rebels who trying to oust him. He said in October that he has known for a long time that "a coup was being plotted from Burkina". Said Bassole: "These accusations are baseless. They should not delude themselves that the arms and ammunition are coming from another country." The minister said the Ivory Coast has in the past three years received several large weapons consignments that were destined for Bouake and Korhogo, the two main towns that have fallen to the rebels. "These big consignments of arms could now be in the hands of the rebels," he said, adding that even UN experts have found no proof that Burkina Faso had helped to arm the insurgents. He said however that Burkina Faso was taking "steps to assure our own safety." "It would be irresponsible not to organise and equip ourselves when we have this conflict on our doorstep. We are reinforcing ourselves while hoping that we will not be drawn in," he said. Earlier this month Burkina Faso's Defence Minister Kouame Lougue said his country would "not be used as a base to destabilise a neighbouring country." Burkina Faso has closed its border with Ivory Coast. Thousands of Burkinabe living and working in Ivory Coast have fled home since the start of the crisis, saying they were being attacked because of their country's suspected support for the rebels. The rebels have so far refused to say who or where their backers are, but recently called on a former military strongman who is living in exile in Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Coulibaly, to make contact with them. He is widely seen as Ivory Coast as being the mastermind behind the army mutiny, but has denied this. (Description of Source: Paris AFP (World Service) in English -- world news service of the independent French news agency Agence France Presse)