Canada welcomes Sudan deal with opposition alliance

OTTAWA, Jan 18 (AFP) — Canada welcomed a deal between the Sudanese government and an umbrella grouping of opposition groups, which could pave the way for a permanent peace.

“It is very encouraging that many of Sudan’s chronic conflicts are being resolved,” said Foreign Minister Pierre Pettigrew.

“This preliminary agreement positions Sudan to end more than a dozen years of low-level conflict in the east and north, and follows the end of the decades-long civil war in the south.

“This bodes well for real progress for peace throughout Sudan in the near future.”

The Sudanese government signed the deal with the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), an umbrella grouping of opposition groups, in Cairo, diplomats said Monday.

A final accord is to be signed on February 12 in the same city.