AU, France discuss key issues

2005-10-17 13:52

Addis Ababa - The president of the African Union (AU) commission will visit France this week to discuss AU-French co-operation on peace and security issues, immigration and development aid on the continent, an official said on Monday.

Former Malian president Alpha Oumar Konare will be making his first official visit to France when he departs from AU headquarters here on Friday for the talks expected to focus on the troubled peace process in Ivory Coast and a furore over African immigration to Europe, the official said.

"AU co-operation with France, in particular on questions of peace and security in Africa, as well as French initiatives on increasing development aid will be on the programme," said Konare's spokesperson Adam Thiam.

"Ivory Coast and immigration are thus also on the agenda," he said.

The visit of Konare to France, which will last until October 27, comes amid continued instability and political wrangling in the former French colony of Ivory Coast where elections due to have been held at month's end have been postponed.

The AU, in a plan endorsed by the United Nations security council, has called for embattled Ivorian President Laurent Gbagbo to remain as head of state for a maximum of another 12 months over the objections of his political foes and rebels who hold the north of the country.

Konare's trip also comes as controversy over African immigration to Europe has hit a high point with the deaths of would-be migrants in recent months trying to break into Spanish enclaves in North Africa.

- AFP