[allAfrica.com]











Uganda, Rwanda Hold Talks Today

The Monitor (Kampala)
NEWS
July 13, 2005
Posted to the web July 13, 2005

By Grace Matsiko
Kampala
HIGH-LEVEL talks between Uganda and Rwanda open in Kampala today with security
and defence expected to be top on the agenda.
The two-day meeting under the Joint Permanent Commission, a framework for
cooperation on political, economic, social and cultural relations between the
two countries will take place at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs headquarters.
Uganda's delegation will be led by Mr Sam Kutesa, the minister of foreign
affairs and the Rwandan delegation will be headed by Dr Charles Murigande, the
minister of foreign affairs and international cooperation.
This is contained in yesterday's statement from the Foreign Affairs Office.
Not on agenda
Though the June incident in which more than half of President Yoweri Museveni's
convoy was prevented from entering Rwanda was not on the agenda, a top official
said the Ugandan delegation would raise the issue at the meeting.
Museveni was travelling to Kigali to hand over the chairmanship of the Common
Market for Eastern and Southern Africa to Rwandan President Paul Kagame when he
was blocked by the security at Katuna border.
Rwandan officials have been quoted as saying the Ugandan convoy violated rules
on the number of guns they were allowed to carry across the border. Uganda has
blamed the incident solely on Rwanda, arguing that the situation could have
been resolved with much less controversy.
"That issue is not on our programme but either side may raise it as among the
issues that need a follow-up" the foreign affairs official said.
He said, under defence, the two parties will discuss military officers who have
defected to each other's capital, an incident that has strained the already
fragile relations.
The deliberation will be conducted in six sub-committees; trade, industry,
tourism, customs and economic cooperation; health, agriculture, livestock and
fisheries; immigration, security, police, governance and cooperation along the
border. Relations between the two countries had improved but the situation
deteriorated. They expelled each other's diplomats accusing them of espionage.

   

  =============================================================================
  Copyright © 2005 The Monitor. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica
                         Global Media (allAfrica.com).
  =============================================================================