Blair arrives in Sudan for talks on Darfur

KHARTOUM, Oct 6 (AFP) — British Prime Minister Tony Blair arrived in Sudan for talks with the country’s leadership on how to resolve the humanitarian crisis in the country’s war-torn western region of Darfur, an AFP reporter travelling with Blair said.

Blair’s plane touched down at Khartoum airport at 6:15 am (0315 GMT) ahead of talks with Sudanese President Omar al-Beshir and Vice President Ali Osman Taha.

Blair will “underline the clear message to the government of Sudan from the international community” that Khartoum must take steps to alleviate suffering in Darfur, his official spokesman said ahead of the visit.

Blair’s uncompromising message in meetings with the Sudanese leaders would be that their country “must comply” with a pair of United Nations resolutions on Darfur, he added.

In September, the UN Security Council passed a resolution threatening sanctions against Sudan if it did not take steps to disarm the Arab Janjaweed militias, after violence in Darfur that has left an estimated 50,000 people dead and diplaced another 1.4 million.

Blair, who has pledged to make Africa one of his key policies during 2005, when Britain holds the rotating presidency of both the G8 rich nations’ club and the European Union, was scheduled to spend around five hours in Sudan.

Blair’s trip comes less than a week after he underwent day surgery in London to correct an irregular heartbeat.

After talks with Beshir and Taha, Blair was due to hold a press conference, before flying to Addis Ababa for a meeting of the Commission for Africa, his personal project designed to galvanise development efforts.

In Ethiopia, Blair would also deliver “a major speech on Africa”, outlining his vision for the continent, the spokesman added.

The stopover in Sudan — the first-ever visit to an independent Sudan by a serving British premier — had been kept under wraps for security reasons, with London only confirming the trip after Blair’s aircraft took off on Tuesday evening.

The crisis in Darfur erupted when Sudan called on the militias to help subdue a rebellion that erupted in the region in February 2003, as mainly black African and poor locals rose up in anger against the Arab-led government they said had ignored their plight.

Blair would tell Sudan’s leaders that they must negotiate a peace settlement with the rebels, and fully accept the role of the African Union in keeping peace, as well as assisting aid efforts, his spokesman said.

“The humanitarian effort should be international, as much as possible, and Sudan should allow unfettered access for both supplies and relief workers throughout its territory,” he explained.

Peace efforts in Darfur have been bogged down by splits among rebel groups, while Khartoum’s main negotiator, Agriculture Minister Majzoub al-Khalifa Ahmed, insisted last week that the government would never allow autonomy for the region.

Blair’s spokesman refused to be drawn on whether Britain supported sanctions against the north African Muslim state, or whether it would join the United States in considering the violence in Darfur as genocide.

He said the premier was simply “relaying and re-emphasising” international worries.

But he stressed that Blair would expect clear answers on issues such as a ceasefire, peace negotiations and aid efforts.

“Those are points which we believe the Sudanese government understand. And I think what we need to see is what the response of the Sudanese government is to the prime minister’s visit,” he said.