Sudanese official hails U.S. role in search for peace in Sudan

CAIRO, Oct. 19, 2003 (dpa) — A senior Sudanese official praised Sunday the role being played by the United States in the search for peace in Sudan, describing it as positive.

“The American role is necessary to encourage the peace process,” Ali Hassan Taj Eddin, Sudanese presidential advisor for African affairs told reporters in Cairo, Egypt.

Taj Eddin further denied reports in the Arabic media suggesting that Washington’s stance regarding issues in the Sudanese conflict was inherently in favour of the southern rebel movement.

Taj Eddin’s comments came as ongoing peace negotiations between the Sudanese government and the rebel Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Naivasha, Kenya, entered a crucial stage.

Negotiations between the two sides were expected to result in an agreement on the broad outlines of a final peace deal expected to bring an end to the 20-year-old Sudanese civil war.

Sources in Naivasha said U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell and a number of regional leaders may attend the signing ceremony of the framework agreement – possibly as early as Wednesday.