Sudanese, Egyptian presidents discuss Darfur troops
Sept 21, 2006 (CAIRO) — Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Bashir discussed the situation in the war-torn Darfur region and the extension of the African Union troops for three months.
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Bashir held a session of talks this evening at Cairo [International] Airport upon the arrival of Sudanese president on a visit to Egypt that will last for some hours., the Egyptian MENA reported.
The talks covered the situation in the Sudanese Darfur region in light of the agreement of the Security and Peace Council, affiliated to the African Union, to extend the mission of the African Union forces operating in Darfur until the end of next December.
The talks also covered the results of contacts made by President Mubarak with world leaders to work towards establishing security and stability in Darfur along with the results of contacts held by President Al-Bashir during his participation in the meetings of the General Assembly of the UN and the Non-aligned Movement Summit in Cuba.
This visit while Egyptian president in unexpected move backed yesterday the deployment of the United Nations peacekeeping troops in Darfur region, a White House official said.
The Egyptian silence over the American statement confirms that Cairo changed its mind and tries to persuade Khartoum to accept the UN forces takeover in Darfur.
(ST)