Sudanese vice-president, IGAD envoy to meet over peace talks

BBC Monitoring Middle East

By Sudanese radio

KHARTOUM, Nov. 13, 2003 — The first vice-president, Ali Uthman Muhammad Taha, will hold a meeting today with the special Kenyan peace envoy to Sudan, Gen [retd] Lazarus Sumbeiywo, to discuss the necessary arrangements for to make the next round of peace negotiations a success.

The negotiations between the government and the people’s movement [rebel Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, SPLM] are scheduled to be held from 30 November to 20 December.

Sumbeiywo is currently visiting the country with the aim of ensuring that a final peace agreement is reached between the government and SPLM. In this connection Sumbeiywo met the presidential peace adviser, Dr Ghazi Salah-al-Din, during which they discussed various issues concerning the negotiations.

Dr Ghazi Salah- al-Din said that the negotiations have reached an important stage and need some political decisions to illustrate that the talks touched on the possibility of reaching a final peace agreement before the end of December, a date which has been agreed upon by the two sides.

However, he said this will only be possible if concentration is made on pending contentious issues and exerting more efforts in the next round of talks.