Mbeki: negotiation between Khartoum, Juba to meet

The Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir met, Tuesday evening, the head of the African Union Commission Thabo Mbeki, who confirmed Khartoum and Juba's agreement to meet with negotiations committees next week. The head of the external relations sector at the National Congress,  professor Ibrahim Ghandour said: "President al-Bashir stressed Khartoum’s commitment to lasting peace with Juba and the implementation of the Security Council and African Peace Council resolution". Mbeki explained: “an agreement was reached between al-Bashir and Salva Kiir, stating that negotiation committees will meet next week to consider the overall decisions of the African Union and the Security Council", expressing his hope for things to progress rapidly. According to experts, Mbeki’s mission seems difficult and complex in light of the controversy between Khartoum’s insistence's on tackling first the security issue first, while Juba wants to put the the issues as priorities in the upcoming negotiations. The official spokesman for the ruling party, Yasser Youssef, said: “The National Party is not concerned with the speech of prime minister Pagan Amum, who does not show any eagerness to reach peace between the two countries. I do not think that the Security Council is going to impose certain constraints on Khartoum to negotiate in Addis Ababa". The Sudanese minister of oil ,Ali al-Jaz, said  that solving the security issue with Juba, without aggression or assault, is a priority and a condition for establishing relations between the two countries. He added that only after this, can the issues of oil and trade be discussed. Al-Jaz added: "We must make sure that relations with the neighbourhood are immune and safe, and there are no disputes between us.”