Sudan denies UN visas
2006-04-20 09:26
New York - Sudan refused to grant visas for a United Nations military assessment mission planning a peacekeeping operation in Darfur.
The Khartoum government had not consented to UN troops to augment the African Union soldiers trying to stop the killing and rape in Sudan's Darfur region.
But, officials said they would discuss it after a peace pact, under negotiation in Abuja, Nigeria.
Salim Ahmed Salim, the AU's chief mediator at the Abuja talks between the government and two rebels groups, told the security council on Tuesday that he expected a ceasefire deal by April 30, but acknowledged frustrations laid ahead.
UN assessment mission
Hedi Annabi, a UN assistant secretary-general for peacekeeping, went to Khartoum this week and spoke to President Omar Hassan al-Bashir and other officials about sending the UN team to Darfur.
UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said: "They felt this was not the time for a UN assessment mission to go into Darfur until the Abuja process was completed. We have a clear political line from the Sudanese at this point."
But, Dujarric said planning continued and options for an eventual force in Darfur would be presented to the security council.
He said: "It's much more a bump in the road than the end of the road for us in terms of contingency planning."
Contingency planning
United States ambassador John Bolton said: "That's clearly a mistake that undercuts our ability to do contingency planning."
Still, there had been hesitation among AU officials about placing their 7 000 troops in Darfur under UN command. North African Arab nations supported Sudan.
The Abuja process had forced a delay in putting to a vote a US draft resolution that would impose sanctions on four Sudanese for abuses in Darfur.
The sanctions, including a travel ban and asset freeze, would be the first against any party in the Darfur conflict.
Bolton said there was "overwhelming support for the sanctions decision, but there are still questions about timing."
Introducing a resolution
China and Russia, with support from Qatar, blocked earlier efforts to impose sanctions, warning that such measures could derail the Abuja talks. But Bolton, by introducing a resolution, was daring them to cast vetoes.
Now, diplomats said three African members - Ghana, Tanzania and the Congo Republic - also wanted to wait until next week and had the sanctions measures adopted at the same time as an encouraging statement on the Abuja talks.
A resolution needed nine vote in favour and no veto from the 15-nation council's five permanent members. Both the US and Britain said none of the four men were involved in the two-year Abuja negotiations.
Deputy British ambassador Adam Thomson said: "Actions would be against individuals responsible for gross violations of human rights or violations of the ceasefire."