U.S. optimistic about Sudan peace deal, senior official says
WASHINGTON, Oct. 28, 2003 (dpa) — The United States is “optimistic” the Sudanese government and southern rebels can reach a peace deal by the end of the year, a top American official said Tuesday.
During a visit by U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell last week in Kenya, the Islamic government and Christian rebels, called the Sudanese People’s Liberation Army, pledged to complete a peace deal by the end of December despite some tricky issues expected to be taken up in the last round of talks.
“I am optimistic,” said Assistant Secretary of State Walter Kansteiner, who has played a mediating role aimed at ending the two- decade civil war. “I think they can do it.”
On the agenda when negotiations resume in December, once Ramadan concludes, are power-sharing in the government, the sharing of oil revenues and the governing of three disputed areas in the country.
Kansteiner said he believes that by already agreeing on a new military structure and integrating some parts of the rebel army, the two sides have achieved the key step in moving forward and gotten more complicated issues out of the way.
“They pulled it together,” he said. “They made some tough compromises and they reached an agreement.”
Kansteiner said both parties are close on power-sharing and wealth-sharing deals but still must resolve questions regarding three areas in the country: the Southern Blue Nile province, the Nuba mountains and Abyei.
“The three areas are complicated and have a lot of history behind them, but I think both sides know that they’ve got to do it,” he said.
Kansteiner spoke with reporters at the State Department in Washington on his last day as assistant secretary for African affairs. He said earlier this month that he would step down for personal reasons.
Sudan’s cooperation in the war on terrorism coupled with a peace deal could lead to better relations with the United States, including its removal from the State Department’s list of state sponsors of terrorism and the lifting of sanctions.
“We’re going to have to go through all of [the different types of sanctions] and look at what the criteria are, why they were placed on it and what is necessary for them to be lifted,” Kansteiner said.