Egypt and Sudan agree to strengthen cooperation

CAIRO, Jan 18, 2004 (dpa) — A preliminary agreement was reached Sunday between Egypt and Sudan allowing freedom of movement, residence, work and property rights to strengthen cooperation.

Egyptian Information Minister Safwat al-Sherif said President Hosni Mubarak and his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Bashir had discussed several agreements during a short meeting in Cairo Sunday.

Despite speculation that the meeting would focus on obstacles in negotiations between al-Bashir’s government and the Sudan People’s Liberation Army, there was no mention of the issue.

Instead, al-Sherif said that the agreement on freedom of movement was being prepared by officials from both countries to be presented to both presidents by February 15.

Other agreements dealt with cooperation in industry and agriculture. Al-Sherif said they were also trying to expand the network of Egyptian channels to reach southern Sudan.

About three million Sudanese live in Egypt, 20,000 of whom are refugees. Bilateral agreements between Egypt and Sudan reached during the 1970s gave Sudanese in Egypt residence, land ownership and entry rights.

Following a coup in Sudan in 1989, relations between the government in Cairo and the new regime in Khartoum deteriorated, making it more difficult for Sudanese in Egypt to exercise those rights.

After the attempted assassination of Egyptian President Mubarak in 1995, Egypt reintroduced entry visas and residence permit requirements for Sudanese.