Egypt asserts stake in Sudan peace talks
CAIRO, Jan 18 (Reuters) – Egypt staked a claim to a role in Sudanese peace talks on Sunday and said its aim was to see the north and south of Sudan stay together in “voluntary union”.
Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir spent several hours in Cairo in talks with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose country’s main concern is to protect its share of the flow of the Nile, the only source of water for most of the country.
The Sudanese government and southern rebels are moving closer to a comprehensive agreement which would put an end to more than 20 years of civil war in the south of Africa’s largest country.
But the agreement is expected to give the southerners a chance to break away from the Arab and Muslim north, possibly complicating Egypt’s quest for water security.
The White Nile flows through the heart of the south, on its way north from Lake Victoria. Peace and economic development in the south could lead to increased water consumption there.
Egyptian Information Minister Safwat el-Sherif told reporters after the summit that Bashir and Mubarak discussed “the importance of Egypt’s role and the importance of Egypt continuing to push and follow up the peace process”.
Egypt has played a relatively minor role in the peace talks, which have taken place in Kenya under the auspices of an African regional organisation and with help from the United States.
But Sherif said: “Egypt has never been isolated from the peace process in Sudan. Anyone who imagines that is wrong.
“Egypt’s efforts have been intense… Egypt’s aim has been to achieve peace and stability and stop the bloodshed while preserving a goal which is loftier, broader and more far-reaching — that the agreement should lead to a voluntary union between all the parties,” he added.
The two presidents also instructed their subordinates to prepare agreements for integration between Egypt and Sudan.
Some of the agreements would give Egyptians and Sudanese the right to visit, live, work and own property in the other country, the minister said.
Bashir and Mubarak want the officials to have the documents ready for review by February 15, he added.