BRUSSELS, 19 July 2006 — World powers pressed Sudan yesterday to accept a United Nations peacekeeping mission in Darfur to replace an ill-equipped African Union force that has been unable to stem the violence that Washington calls genocide.
The United Nations and aid agencies also urged donors at talks in Brussels involving UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, the EU, the United States and Sudan to finance the 7,000-strong AU force for a few more months before a UN takeover.
Tens of thousands of people have been killed and 2.5 million forced into exile in three years of fighting in lawless Sudan.
“I still am hopeful that we will get Sudanese government to cooperate and to support the (UN) force because after all we are going there to help the government, we are going to help them protect their own people,” UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan told reporters.
US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Jendayi Frazer said: “To protect innocent lives in Darfur we need an international peacekeeping operation with the capability to address the complexity of the challenges.” Frazer and the EU said a UN operation was the only viable option in Darfur in the long term.
The AU had wanted to hand its operation to the United Nations at the end of September but its leaders decided earlier this month to extend the mission until the end of the year.
