Sudan rejected Washington's condition for improving bilateral
relations that Khartoum accepts the international forces to be
deployed in the western region of Darfur, the Sudanese
Akhbaralyoum daily reported on Wednesday.
The Sudanese government insists that the improvement and
normalization of ties between any two countries should be, at the
first place, based on the desire of both without imposing any
precondition, according to the report.
US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said on Monday that there
was no chance of improved relations between her country and Sudan
if the latter rejected UN peacekeepers in Darfur.
Rice made the remarks to reporters following a meeting in
Washington with Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol, who is
currently visiting the United States for clarifying his
government's position on the issue.
Commenting on Rice's statement, Sudanese Foreign Ministry
spokesman Fadlallah al-Hadi reiterated Sudan's keenness on
normalizing relations with Washington and any other country without
harming Sudan's dignity and sovereignty.
"If both Sudan and the United States have the desire to
normalize their relations without any precondition, there is
nothing preventing them from doing that," the spokesman said.
In late August, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution
1706calling for the deployment of up to 20,000 troops and police to
replace the ill-equipped African troops monitoring a fragile
ceasefire in the troubled region.
The Sudanese government rejected the resolution, saying it would
lead to flagrant foreign interference in its internal affairs and
re-colonization of the country.
(Xinhua News Agency September 14, 2006)
