CHINA: China says Sudan is willing to discuss Annan plan for Darfur peace

Sudan has agreed to talks on Darfur based a peace plan proposed by former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said on Tuesday (April 10). During a visit to Khartoum last weekend, China's Assistant Foreign Minister Zhai Jun urged President Omar Hassan al-Bashir to show more flexibility on the Annan plan and improve humanitarian conditions in Darfur. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Qin Gang (pron: cheen gahng), addressing a regular news conference in Beijing said: "(Assistant Foreign Minister Zhai Jun) made proposals to Sudan regarding resolving the Darfur issue through political means, especially through the 'Annan Resolution'. "President Bashir gave his reaction. He said Sudan basically accepted the 'Annan Resolution'. He said Sudan would like to discuss the details of the resolution with all relevant parties. Sudan would like to enhance communication with the other parties. And the Sudanese government would like to see a peaceful and stable Darfur as soon as possible," said Qin Gang. China, which buys much of Sudan's oil and has veto power in the U.N. Security Council, is facing growing criticism from Western governments and rights campaigners for having rejected U.N. forces without Khartoum's agreement. The spokesman also said the six-party talks on North Korea's nuclear programme faced a difficult phase, as a Saturday (April 14) deadline for beginning nuclear disarmament would likely be missed by North Korea. "All parties have met difficulties in carrying out the initial steps of the February 13 joint statement. This is normal because the six-party talks is not a smooth road. There are lots of turnarounds and difficulties along the way. I don't think the talks will be a failure or will be invalid if the implementation of the initial steps is postponed," said Qin Gang. On February 13, the six parties agreed on a landmark statement saying North Korea would halt its nuclear experiments before mid-April in exchange for energy aid and security pledges. North Korea refuses to resume talks because of the issue of funds frozen in a Macau bank. Qin suggested that the Bank of China, which had been initially lined up to accept the frozen funds on behalf of Pyongyang, still needed more reassurances it would not be penalised for taking the money. "The Bank of China is also a listed company," he said. "It has its own international duties and should act according to international laws. On the BDA issue, both the Chinese side and the government of Macau have their own duties and concerns. If we want to solve the problem properly, we should take into consideration the interests and concerns of all parties, including those of China and Macau." The funds were frozen in the Banco Delta Asia (BDA) after U.S. authorities designated the Macau bank as a "primary money-laundering concern" in September 2005 and accused North Korea of illicit activities, including counterfeiting U.S. currency and smuggling drugs. The U.S. Treasury Department announced Tuesday (April 10) Macau is set to release the frozen funds, but did not say when or give a precise dollar figure. NP/AD

ITN Source | April 10, 2007

Tags:. .urged. .duties. .exchange. .properly. .ministry