China urges Sudan to heed international concerns on Darfur

Jan 16, 2007 (BEIJING) — China’s Foreign Ministry urged Sudan on Tuesday to heed international concerns about the conflict in the Darfur region, but reiterated Beijing’s support for Sudan against foreign meddling.

The comments come ahead of a key trip by Chinese President Hu Jintao to Africa that may include a stop in Sudan and as a Chinese official visits Khartoum to discuss Darfur, where three years of civil strife have left 200,000 dead and displaced another 2.5 million people.

Negotiations are the best way to resolve the Darfur problem and Beijing is playing its part by “having consultations with relevant parties and within the U.N.,” Foreign Ministry spokesman Liu Jianchao said at a media briefing.

Any solution would have to respect Sudan’s sovereignty, Liu said.

China, the largest customer for Sudanese oil, has faced criticism for expanding economic ties with Sudan in apparent disregard for the humanitarian crisis going on in Darfur while other governments were cutting trade ties with Khartoum in a bid to stop the violence.

Last week, U.S. President George W. Bush’s special envoy for Sudan, Andrew Natsios, met with Beijing officials and afterward told reporters that China has begun to put more pressure on the Sudanese government. He said he felt assured that Washington and Beijing were largely working in concert on the subject.

Assistant Foreign Minister Zhai Jun was in Sudan currently for talks with the Sudanese leadership on the Darfur issue but gave no details, said Liu.

He said Hu would “soon” visit several African nations but that the itinerary wasn’t finalized and wouldn’t confirm whether Sudan would be included.

The Sudan Tribune cited a government spokesman as saying Hu would visit Khartoum in early February.

(AP)