Iran rejects pressures on Sudan regarding crisis in Darfur

KHARTOUM, July 16, 2004 (KUNA) — Iran’s Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi rejected here on Friday international pressures on Sudan regarding the crisis in Darfur.

In a joint press conference here with his Sudanese counterpart Mustafa Ismail, Kharrazi considered the Darfur crisis as a domestic issue that should best be left to Sudanese authorities without outside intervention. He expressed his country’s readiness to assit Sudan with humanitarian aid to alleviate the suffering of those displaced in Darfur.

The Iranian official revealed that Iran’s president Muhammad Khatemi planned to visit Sudan next October to sign a number of bilateral agreements.

Meanwhile Ismail said that Iran had the right to pursue nuclear power technology for peaceful purposes and underscored that Sudan was interested in Iranian investments in the Sudanese oil industry.

Kharrazi arrived here last night on a two-day visit where he is scheduled to meet with Sudanese officials in addition to giving a number of lectures on Iran’s perception of regional and international issues that affect the course of policies and developments in the Middle East.