Cablegate: Darfur: Mfa Criticises U.S. Special Envoy Remarks

VZCZCXRO6506
PP RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #2725 3261353
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 221353Z NOV 06
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 5333
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS KHARTOUM 002725

SIPDIS

SIPDIS
SENSITIVE

DEPT FOR AF/SPG, AF/RSA, AF/SE, AND S/CRS
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV MOPS KPKO SOCI AU UN US SU
SUBJECT: DARFUR: MFA CRITICISES U.S. SPECIAL ENVOY REMARKS

Ref: Khartoum 02711

1. (U) Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesman Ali Al-Sadig described
Special Envoy for Sudan Andrew Natsios' November 20 statements on
Darfur as being "inappropriate and not serving to resolve the
situation in Darfur." "We have no idea of the content of Plan A,
never mind Plan B which he refers to. These are American
arrangements which we have no knowledge of." Al-Sadig added, in
remarks made on November 21 to the Government's Sudan News Agency,
that it is "regrettable that the U.S. administration would confine
the problem of Darfur in its various dimensions to the question of
combined forces only. This is a misinterpretation that would not
help reach the desired solution to the problem."

2. (U) The spokesman pointed out that if Natsios was referring to
the outcome of the Addis Ababa meeting, the Government of Sudan was
still conducting internal deliberations with respect to its
conclusions. Furthermore, he charged that Natsios had ignored the
fact that agreement was reached on most of the outstanding questions
under review, with remaining differences confined to just two
points, the size of the force and command arrangements.

3. (SBU) Comment: This statement and other public comments of
Sudanese officials (reftel) reflect a concerted effort to spin a
positive outcome and distance themselves from assurances made at
the November 16 AU-UN meeting in Addis Ababa. The international
community will have to keep up the pressure on Sudan to
follow-through on these and other, outstanding, commitments dating
from the May 2006 signing of the Darfur Peace Agreement. End
comment.

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