New York - A UN Security Council delegation embarked Thursday on a tour of four African capitals, with the first stop in Addis Ababa to discuss the situation in Sudan and ways to enhance the working relationship with the African Union.

The council has sent delegations to Africa in past years to get first-hand understandings of the situation in the continent, where the UN has deployed the largest peacekeeping missions in the world to try to end conflicts and restore peace and security.

The 15-member delegation will visit Addis Ababa, Kinshasa, Kigali and Monrovia to hold talks with government authorities on UN-related activities in their countries.

British UN Ambassador John Sawers will lead the talks in the Ethiopian capital for an overview of peace and security in Africa, the situation in Sudan and the deployment of the joint UN-AU peacekeeping operation in Darfur. The talks will also include the situation in Somalia and piracy problems.

French Ambassador Jean-Maurice Ripert will lead the talks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and US Ambassador Susan Rice will lead the talks in Liberia's capital Monrovia.

In Monrovia, Rice will reaffirm the council's support for the government and people of Liberia to rebuild their country and strengthen programmes on constitutional democracy and economic development.(dpa)