(VILLEPINTE) - European Union forces deployed in Chad are unbiased and act strictly within their mandate, EU foreign policy chief Javier Solana said Tuesday.

His comment came after Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno accused the European Union force, EUFOR, of cooperating with rebels, raising fears he would ask them to leave.

EUFOR, is stationed in eastern Chad to protect displaced people and refugees fleeing from war-ravaged Darfur in neighbouring Sudan.

"We welcomed EUFOR with joy ... but it took us by surprise to see, in the first hostile situation, this force cooperating with the invaders," the Chadian president said Monday in a televised address.

"We have the right to question the effectiveness of this force and how useful its presence is in Chad," he said.

The mainly French EUFOR force, expected to reach 3,700 soldiers, was sent to Chad in mid-March for one year to help facilitate humanitarian work and protect refugees.

Chadian rebels opposed to Deby are advancing toward the capital Ndjamena.

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