Irwin Arieff, United Nations – The Security Council extended the life of a UN peacekeeping mission in East Timor for a final six months on Tuesday after Secretary-General Kofi Annan argued the fledgling nation was still too fragile to stand up on its own.

A resolution adopted unanimously by the 15-nation council renewed the mission's mandate "for a final period of six months until 20 May, 2005" while instructing it "to focus increasingly on implementing its exit strategy."

East Timor became independent in May 2002 after centuries of Portuguese colonial rule, 24 years of occupation by Indonesia and 2-1/2 years of UN administration.

The Timorese people voted overwhelmingly in an August 1999 referendum to break free of Jakarta, prompting a rampage by gangs organized by the Indonesian military.

More than 1,000 people were killed in violence surrounding the vote, prompting Australia to send in troops to restore order. The United Nations then ran the territory until independence.

The UN Mission of Support in East Timor, or UNMISET, numbered 11,000 troops and civilians when first authorized in 1999 to guide the territory to nationhood. But it has dwindled to fewer than 1,000 now, including 472 troops and military observers.

Annan, in a report to the Security Council this month, said the overall security situation in East Timor had been "calm and peaceful" in recent months.

But Timorese defense forces lack needed equipment and experience while border security agencies are as yet unable to manage the borders on their own, he said.

The government has in the past feared cross-border attacks by Indonesian gangs and militias and Annan cautioned that "the possibility of exceptional circumstances" beyond the ability of East Timor's national police to handle "cannot be ruled out."