Sudan rejects immediate OK for UN force in Darfur
June 6, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese government told the U.N. Security Council Tuesday that it would not give immediate approval for U.N. peacekeepers for Darfur, but was willing to talk about a step seen as key to a solution in the restive western region.
A 7,000-strong African Union force has lacked the troops and material to quell fighting in Darfur, site of a civil war that has killed thousands and forced even more from their homes over the past three years. Many have placed hopes on a muscular U.N. force, but Sudan’s government, accused of abuses some have likened to genocide in Darfur, has portrayed that as a Western invasion.
The issue was discussed at length during closed-door meetings that council members here to press for peace in Darfur held with President Omar al-Bashir, Foreign Minister Lam Akol and members of Parliament. The meeting with the president, scheduled for one hour, lasted nearly two and both sides said the atmosphere was good.
Afterward, Akol said the government had “been assured” that any U.N. role in Darfur must be discussed with Sudanese leaders. Key council members expressed hope that the meetings had defused misunderstandings and misconceptions about the U.N.’s intentions and expressed optimism that the government would eventually allow the deployment of U.N. troops in Darfur.
Akol made clear Sudan wants to go step by step, reserving its final decision.
A joint U.N.-African Union team is arriving in Khartoum on Friday and Akol said it will discuss a U.N. role with the Sudanese government in talks here next week. The joint mission will then head to Darfur to make a technical assessment for a possible U.N. takeover, report back to the Sudanese government and its own leaders, Akol said.
It could be months before U.N. troops are in place. The security situation, meanwhile, is worrying, with myriad armed groups apparently jockeying for position ahead of being forced to lay down arms following the adoption last month of a peace treaty. International humanitarian groups who say Darfur’s civilians are at risk and their own aid programs threatened say violent criminals also are taking advantage of the general chaos.
The government’s opposition was fueled last month when a council resolution to spur planning for a handover was adopted under Chapter 7 of the U.N. Charter which allows military action, sparking fears of U.N. intervention in Sudan. The Sudanese were also frustrated that the resolution didn’t pay tribute to the government for signing a peace agreement on May 5 with the largest rebel group in Darfur.
The U.K.’s U.N. ambassador, Emyr Jones Parry, who is leading the U.N. mission, said the council underlined to the president that a U.N. takeover of peacekeeping in Darfur “could only happen with the consent of the government.”
“There is no question of an intervention force,” Jones Parry said. “We hope there will be a U.N. force” to support implementation of the Darfur Peace Agreement, which calls for protection of hundreds of thousands of civilians. He said the reference to Chapter 7 was targeted at those who undermine the agreement.
Russia’s deputy U.N. ambassador, Konstantin Dolgov, told reporters there was strong Sudanese opposition to putting a peacekeeping force in Darfur under Chapter 7, “and we have to respect this position, because we have to have consent and agreement of the government.”
U.S. Deputy Ambassador Jackie Sanders said there was some opposition and some misunderstanding, “and as we went through, they became less concerned or less afraid of what it meant.”
(ST/AP)