Nicaraguan Foreign Minister Norman Caldera confirmed Tuesday that his country received a request of the United Nations to participate in a multilateral peace keeping force to be deployed in Haiti for three months to restore public order.

"They officially presented the petition of support, but what they are requesting is collaboration for a multilateral force and it is not yet the phase for humanitarian aid," indicated Caldera.

The minister underlined the government's will to only participate in humanitarian assistance in the Caribbean nation. "We assume that in a later phase blue helmets of the United Nationswill participate and, in that case, we would ask the National Assembly to allow the dispatch of a contingent with humanitarian aid."

Defense Minister Jose Adan Guerra reiterated that "the participation of Nicaragua would only be within the framework of eminent humanitarian tasks, not in the maintenance of peace."

Nicaraguan President Enrique Bolanos anticipated Monday night his government was considering the possible integration of a task force to aid Haitian people but only with humanitarian assistance,just as they did in Iraq.