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The UN delegation was led by Dutch General Patrick Cammaert, who arrived in Chad on January 26. UN and Chadian sources said the team left Ndjamena for New York.

The Chadian sources and those close to the UN Mission in the Central African Republic and Chad (MINURCAT) declined to give details of the talks, which came after Chad's government requested that the UN mission's mandate is not renewed after it expires on March 15.

On January 27, General Cammaert promised during a meeting with Chadian leaders to come up with a timetable for the withdrawal of MINURCAT. Chadian General Oki Dagache, who is President Idriss Deby's representative with the UN force, said that the discussions would "not be about the reasons" for Chad's request, but should concern the "practical modalities of the withdrawal of MINURCAT after March 15".

The mission was set up under a UN Security Council resolution in 2007 to ensure the safety of about 450,000 refugees and displaced people in eastern Chad and northeastern Central African Republic, both affected by the war in Darfur across the border in western Sudan. The UN team was also responsible for the voluntary return of refugees and helping with humanitarian aid.

On March 15, 2009, MINURCAT took over from an EU mission called EUFOR with a mandate of a year, with the possibility of renewing it.

In December, 46 percent of MINURCAT's planned full strength of 5,200 troops were deployed on the ground. The special envoy of the UN secretary general in Chad, Victor Angelo, announced a complete deployment for the end of January.