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COMMUNIQUE NO. 13/Abj-05

President Obasanjo meets the AU Special Envoy for the Inter-Sudanese Peace Talks on Darfur as Mediation Efforts Continue

As part of ongoing efforts to move forward the Inter-Sudanese Peace Talks on Darfur, His Excellency Olusegun Obasanjo, President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Chairman of the African Union yesterday Thursday 30 June 2005 held consultations with Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, AU Special Envoy for the Inter-Sudanese Peace Talks. President Obasanjo then met separately with the Representatives of Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM).

Late in the evening, Dr Salim chaired a meeting of the AU Mediation Team along with the Facilitators, International Partners and Observers to consider a package of proposals on the outstanding issues in the Draft Declaration of Principles (DoP).

The Mediation is continuing consultations on the DoP with the Sudanese Parties - the Government of The Sudan (GoS), the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), and the Sudan Liberation Movement/Army (SLM/A) to further discuss the outstanding issues on the DoP and arrive at an acceptable document as soon as possible.

On his part, the AU Special Envoy Dr Salim has, in the past few days, continued his intensive and wide ranging consultations. In this regard, he held separate discussions with the leaders of the Sudanese Parties – Majzoub Al-Khalifa, Head of the GoS delegation; Dr Ibrahim Khalil, President of JEM; and Abdelwahid Mohamed Ahmed Elnour Chairman of the SLM/A, with whom he reviewed the latest developments in the negotiations.

Earlier, Dr Salim held consultations with Dr Ali Treiki, Secretary for African Affairs in the Libyan General People’s Committee for External Relations and International Cooperation, on the ways and means to move forward in the current Round of the Inter-Sudanese Peace Talks on Darfur.

Abuja, 01 July 2005