Germany, Ethiopia to host informal talks on Sudan’s armed conflicts

January 14, 2016 (KHARTOUM) – The African Union has said informal talks between the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement-North(SPLM-N) would resume in the German capital Berlin on 22 January.

The AU also announced that the first round of informal talks on Darfur between the government from one side the Justice and Liberation Movement (JEM) and Sudan Liberation Movement – Minni Minnawi (SLM-MM) on the other side would be held in the Ethiopian town of Debre zeit on January 23.

The government and the SPLM-N last December held a successful first round of informal talks that allowed the two warring parties to build confidence and to better understand the positions of each other.

The mediators hope that similar meetings on Darfur conflict could be a success and break the stalled talks with Darfur groups.

Director of the African Union’s Liaison Office in Khartoum, Mahmoud Kan Thursday said this second round of informal talks between the Government and the SPLM-N will be held in Berlin on January 22 in collaboration with the German government.

The African Union High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) and the German government signed a strategic partnership providing that the latter facilitates its efforts to end the armed conflicts in Sudan and support democratic transition in the east African nation.

Kan further told the Sudan Media Center (SMC) the talks between the Sudanese government and the Darfur rebel groups will be held in the Ethiopian town of Debre Zeit, some 50 KM from the Capital Addis Ababa.

He said the talks with the Darfur movements will take into consideration the output of the recent Paris meeting between the Darfur rebels and the Qatari mediation, expecting the parties reach “peaceful solutions that serve Sudan’s interests.’’

Qatar’s Deputy Prime Minister Ahmed bin Abdallah Al-Mahmoud met on 11 January in Paris with JEM leader Gibril Ibrahim and SLM-MM leader Minni. The latter are expected to meet the former again after providing a joint position paper.

Presidential Assistant Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid had earlier expected peaceful settlements with the country’s rebel movements in the upcoming rounds of peace talks.

Hamid urged for more serious talks in order to achieve peace ’’under the current conducive local, regional and international conditions.’’

(ST)