Sudan and US envoy agree to ease Darfur humanitarian situation

April 10, 2009 (KHARTOUM) — Sudanese Second Vice-President and the visiting U.S. envoy today agreed to further ease the humanitarian situation in Darfur in order to fill the gaps that can be reached through joint assessment.

The expulsion of some 13 international aid groups by the Sudanese authorities last March created important humanitarian gaps in Darfur where the expelled groups were responsible for at least half of the humanitarian aid provided there.

Vice-President Ali Osman Mohamed Taha, and the presidential adviser Ghazi Salah-Eddin this evening held a meeting with U.S. envoy for Sudan, Scott Gration to discuss a number of issues, including the humanitarian situation in Darfur.

“We agreed to organize the humanitarian activities within the framework of Sudan’s sovereignty and the ousted organizations will not return to the country said Salah-Eddin following the meeting.

He further said they had agreed to further facilitate the relief work and fill the gaps identified through the joint assessment, adding “We have reached other useful things in this area.”

After visiting Darfur and southern Sudan, Scott Gration held on Thursday a meeting with officials of the ruling National Congress Party. Following the meeting he stressed the need to come up with a solution to the humanitarian situation in Darfur.

“And with that, we have to come up with a security solution. And to the degree that we can help create that environment, we are ready to help in any way we can,” he added.

He also pointed out they discussed way to work together. “We talked about building that trust, that relationship. Things that both countries have to do to move forward.”

Salah Eddin said they tackled “some issues” especially as Gration visited southern Sudan and Darfur and had the opportunity to have “documented impression and not to rely on what he could hear from the others.”

The Sudanese presidential adviser also said they had clearly stressed the need to improve bilateral relations in order to enable the US to play positive role in the resolution of the Sudanese problems.

“We made it clear that the U.S. must have positive relations with the Sudan before to play a positive role.”

“We must realize that there is a new president in USA who is not only a new president, but brings a new message” said the Sudanese official in rare positive tone about the new administration.

He further added “We want to see the credibility of (this message) in their practice at the level of U.S. relations with Sudan, or Africa and the Arab world”… “We have to examine the situation in the context of the transformations that occurred in America recently.”

The US envoy appeared to have succeeded to reassure the Sudanese government with his conciliatory message saying that he wants to work on improving the thorny relations between the two countries.

He said that he came “with my hands open” and hoped that Sudan’s government will respond “with a hand of friendship,” saying that “like all my American colleagues, Ana Ahib Sudan,” or “I love Sudan.”

The remarks signaled a shift in policy from the confrontational tone of the Bush administration particularly over the issue of Darfur.

The US and Sudan have a long history of strained relations. In 1997 former president Bill Clinton imposed comprehensive sanctions on Sudan and designated it as a state sponsor of terrorism.

The sanctions were later expanded and stiffened by subsequent US administrations. Moreover the US military launched a rocket attack against a pharmaceutical plant in the Sudanese capital suspected of manufacturing lethal nerve gas.

Relations further worsened over the Darfur conflict which Washington labeled as ‘genocide’ in 2004.

Gration said today he would be back to Sudan within one month to tackle bilateral relations.

(ST)