Sudanese vice president arrives to Pretoria

Nov 28, 2006 (PRETORIA) — Sudan’s first vice president, Salva Kiir Mayardit, arrived at the Union Buildings in Pretoria on Tuesday for talks with President Thabo Mbeki.

The two men are expected to discuss the situation in Darfur and the expiry date of the African Union peacekeeping mission at the end of December.

The United Nations has mooted a peacekeeping mission in the war-ravaged region of Sudan, but the country’s government has vocally resisted the deployment of UN peacekeepers.

Kiir, who is also the president of autonomous Southern Sudan, has publicly disagreed with Sudan’s President Omar al-Bashir over the refusal of Sudan to accept the deployment of UN peacekeepers to replace the AU troops.

“My position has always been very clear… that international forces should come to save lives,” Kiir was recently reported as saying.

South Africa has on several occasions said the only way to ensure peace in Sudan is to deploy UN peacekeepers in the region.

Kiir was not scheduled to make any public statements after his visit with Mbeki.

(SAPA)