Chad rejets Sudan’s proposal of joint patrols along border
Feb 7, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese minister of state in the Foreign Ministry al-Samani al-Wasilah said that Chadian government had rejected a Sudan’s proposal of establishing a joint Sudanese, Chadian and CAR force to monitor the borders.
Sudan has called on its neighbor Chad to agree to set up joint patrols in border regions as a way to resolve border disputes that have strained their relations in the past month.
On July 10, 2004 Chad and Sudan had agreed to set up joint border patrols following complaints from Chad that violence in Sudan’s Darfur region has spilled over onto its territory.
Sudanese President al-Bashir and his Chadian counterpart, Idriss Deby, also agreed to create a joint security commission and another group to assess damage caused by cross-border raids.
At that time Chad was complaining from the Arab militia incursions against refugee camps in Chad. But now Chad says Sudan must: disarm Chadian deserters and other armed groups in Sudan, hand deserters over to UNHCR, end Sudanese militia incursions into Chad and compensate victims of cross-border attacks by Sudanese militia.
Chad accused Sudan of sheltering and backing Chadian rebels who last month attacked a town on its eastern border with Sudan. Their relationship has since deteriorated after Chad declared a “state of belligerence” with Khartoum.
Last month the Libyan leader Muammar Gadhafi proposed the deployment along the volatile Sudan Chad borders of three thousand soldiers from the current African Union force in Darfur to close these borders in the face of the rebels from both sides.
The Chadian Foreign Minister, Ahmat Allam-Mi , has declared his country’s welcome of the Libyan mediation to settle the Sudan-Chad tension, according.
Khartoum and Tripoli have affirmed that the mini African summit to ease tensions between Sudan and Chad will be held tomorrow, Wednesday 8 February, in the Libyan capital.
The president’s assistant, Nafei Ali Nafei, told the media that the summit would bring together President Omar al-Bashir and his Libyan and Chadian counterparts. He hoped that the summit would succeed in easing the tension between the two countries.
In Tripoli, the president’s adviser, Mustafa Osman Ismail, and the Libyan, Chadian, Burkinabe and Congolese foreign ministers yesterday discussed the arrangements being made for the summit.
The Libyan minister of foreign affairs, Abdelrahman Shalqam, said that the summit would convene tomorrow, with the objective of strengthening ties and easing tensions between Sudan and Chad.
(ST)