Sudan reiterates rejection of Paris Conference on Darfur

June 12, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — The Sudanese government announced on Tuesday its refusal of the invitation to attend an international conference France proposed to host in Paris on June25 to discuss the crisis in the western Sudanese region of Darfur.

The announcement was made by the Sudanese Foreign Ministry one day after French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner concluded a two-day visit in Khartoum where he conveyed the invitation to the Sudanese sides.

Before Kouchner’s arrival in Sudan, the Sudanese Foreign Ministry said in a statement that similar invitations had been sent to the United Nations, the African Union, the European Union and the United States, South Africa, China as well as other countries except Sudan.

“In the context of its preparation for this conference, the French government has not made contacts on consultations with Sudan,” the statement said.

It added that any conference on Darfur was a matter concerning Sudan, and that “the outcome of this conference will be useless without the agreement and blessing of Sudan.”

The statement noted that an recent international meeting in Tripoli had stressed the necessity to unify the existing initiatives and draw a road map for reaching peace through negotiations under the sponsorship of the African Union and the United Nations.

It expressed expectation that the envoys of the United Nations and the African Union, Jan Eliasson and Salem Ahmed Salem, will pay a visit to Sudan soon to continue their mediation efforts.

“Any initiative outside this framework will only break up the efforts and not serve the peace cause in Darfur,” the statement added.

The French foreign minister left Khartoum on Monday after having meetings with Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir, Foreign Minister Lam Akol and other officials on the Darfur issue.

During the talks, the French foreign minister put forward suggestions over the Darfur problem, especially the proposed Paris Conference on Darfur.

After his meeting with the Sudanese president, the French foreign minister told reporters that their talks were “extremely difficult”.

But the Sudanese side expressed its reservations over the French suggestions.

(Xinhua)