US pledges to pay 26% of Darfur peace operation

July 13, 2007 (KHARTOUM) — US president special envoy for Sudan has pledged yesterday that USA would assume 26% of the Darfur peacekeeping operation affirming that Washington would be the biggest contributor of the Hybrid Operation.

During his meeting with Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol, US Envoy to Sudan Andrew Natsios said United States would bear payment of 26 per cent of the hybrid force’s costs, after referring the funds offer to the UN Security Council for approval and consulting with the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations to take charge of the funds.

Natsios added that Washington would be the biggest financier of the peacekeeping operation in Darfur.

The U.S. envoy commended the Sudanese government for recently accepting a hybrid force of African and U.N. peacekeepers to be deployed in Darfur to end the bloodshed, but called on it to follow through with its implementation.

“We welcome the Sudanese government’s acceptance of the hybrid U.N.-AU peace keeping force, but we must now have action by the government to facilitate and speed up the implementation process,” said Natsios.

The Sudanese government for months resisted a push for more than 20,000 U.N. peacekeepers to replace the 7,000-strong AU force, but finally agreed in June to a compromise deal for the U.N. to deploy jointly with the African Union.

(ST)