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Seven UN Members Oppose US Draft On Sudan
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"So
if you wanted to use the word 'banana,' so long as it is clear
that it equals sanctions. The meaning has to be very clear,"
said Danforth
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UNITED
NATIONS, July 29 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – A US draft
resolution threatening sanctions against
Sudan
in 30 days was met with opposition in the
UN Security Council, amid calls to give the Sudanese government more
time to rein in militias in
Darfur
.
Seven
of the Council's 15 members pressed the
US
on Wednesday, July 28, to soften a threat
of UN sanctions against
Khartoum
it failed to disarm Janajaweed militias in
Darfur
, reported Reuters.
Pakistan
,
China
,
Russia
,
Algeria
,
Angola
, the
Philippines
and
Brazil
have expressed concern about the sanctions
threat, council diplomats said.
At
least nine votes are required for council approval.
The
current version of the American resolution threatens unspecified
sanctions against
Khartoum
in 30 days if it fails to fulfill
commitments to disarm the Janjaweed and give relief workers full
access to the region.
"Quite
a number" of council members including
Beijing
had suggested dropping the word
"sanctions" during closed-door talks on Wednesday, Chinese
Deputy Ambassador Zhang Yishan told Reuters.
If
that change were made, the resolution would still express the
council's "intention to consider further actions" should the
Sudanese government fail to meet its commitments.
"We
Mean Sanctions"
But
the
United States
remained defiant.
US
Ambassador John Danforth to the UN told reporters, "I think it
would have to be clear to the government of
Sudan
that what we mean is sanctions.
"So
if you wanted to use the word 'banana,' so long as it is clear that it
equals sanctions. The meaning has to be very clear," he said,
hoping to circulate a final draft by Thursday, July 29.
Still,
Danforth said
Washington
is open to compromise in the final version
of the draft, which it hopes to bring to a vote on Thursday or Friday.
Meanwhile,
Sudan
renewed denial of backing the Janjaweed
and accuses the West of meddling in its affairs.
"Could
the Americans disarm the militias in
Iraq
?"
Sudan
's UN Ambassador Elfatih Erwa, asked
reporters outside the council chambers on Wednesday.
US
and European Union support for a tough UN resolution was motivated by
"local politics," Erwa said, dismissing talks of possible
UN-authorized armed intervention in
Sudan
in case of noncompliance with the
resolution.
"It
will be a nightmare in
Darfur
. It's worse than
Iraq
," he warned.
Several
Sudanese officials have warned the situation in
Darfur
could be an "Iraq-like", referring to the cauldron of chaos
and anarchy in
Iraq
after the US-led invasion on claims of finding weapons of mass
destruction.
More
Times
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Aboul
Gheit discussed with Powell "the importance of giving the
element of time to the Sudanese government"
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This
came as
Egypt
asked the
United States
on Wednesday to give the Sudanese government more time to meet its
commitments.
"I
told the secretary of state of the importance of giving the element of
time to the Sudanese government to carry out what it has taken upon
itself in the way of commitments," Egyptian Foreign Minister
Ahmed Abul Gheit told a news conference with visiting American
counterpart Colin Powell.
"I
assured the secretary of state that we sense that the Sudanese
government is trying hard and we must extend the hand of
assistance," he said.
The
Egyptian top diplomat said he and Powell talked about "continuing
to extend a helping hand to the Sudanese government and the Sudanese
people, and continuing to rely on diplomatic means".
Powell
commented,: "We should give the Sudanese government time to
respond, but these people (the Darfuris) don't have that much time
before disease and famine take tens of thousands of lives."
African
Peacekeepers
Meanwhile,
the African Union has said it may transform its protection force into
a "full-fledged peacekeeping mission" in
Darfur
to force Janjaweed to lay down its arms, a move expected to defuse
tension in the turbulent region.
The
pan-African body is already planning to send some 300 troops to
Darfur
by the end of July to protect its team of observers and monitors
overseeing the implementation of a shaky ceasefire deal between the
militia and rebel groups, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
Nigeria
and
Rwanda
are the two African countries that have confirmed they will contribute
troops to tackle the crisis, which UN officials have described as the
world's worst humanitarian crisis.
The
AU's Peace and Security Council on Tuesday, July 27, asked its
chairman Alpha Oumar Konare to prepare "a comprehensive plan on
how best to enhance the effectiveness of the AU mission on the
ground."
"This
includes the possibility of transforming the said mission into a
full-fledged peacekeeping mission, with the requisite mandate and size
to ensure the effective implementation of the ceasefire
agreement," an AU statement said.
The
mission will lay much emphasis on the "neutralization of the
Janjaweed militia, the protection of the civilian population and the
facilitation of the delivery of humanitarian assistance," it
said.
The
Khartoum
government poured blame on rebels, who
dealt a heavy blow to the fragile peacemaking drive in
Darfur
after walking
out on July 17, from the African Union-mediated peace talks in
the Ethiopian capital.
Sudanese
officials and experts also warned Christian missionaries could flood
Darfur
under
the guise of humanitarian relief in case of any foreign
military intervention in the predominantly-Muslim region.
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