Uganda's foreign minister has welcomed the deployment of US troops to help the country battle Lord's Resistance Army rebels [LRA], but said the contingent of 100 combat-ready advisors was "well overdue".

The LRA is one of the most violent armed groups in Central Africa and its leader Joseph Kony, who has evaded capture for two decades, is wanted for alleged crimes against humanity.

Henry Okello Oryem, the Ugandan foreign minister, said: "We're delighted by the announcement by President Obama, but you will appreciate that we wished that what is happening now had happened 20 years ago.

Al Jazeera's Malcolm Webb reports from Kampala, Uganda.