Washington, D.C. — Sudan's President Umar el-Bashir reiterated Monday in Khartoum his agreement to an international force in Darfur. Such a force could be composed of African Union (AU) troops or some hybrid combination of AU and United Nations (UN) soldiers. But their "helmets should be of green color, which belongs to the African Union... Any support [along those lines] is welcome," he said.
The remarks were made during a video conference in which Bashir interacted simultaneously with journalists in major cities around the world, including Pretoria and Washington, D.C.
Earlier this year the UN Security Council issued Resolution 1706, which authorized the UN mission in Sudan "to use all necessary means" to enforce its mandate in its area of deployment. Bashir opposes this resolution on grounds that it amounts to an unacceptable violation of Sudan's sovereignty, and instead calls on the UN to help fund African Union troops on the ground. "Rejection of the resolution doesn't mean that we reject cooperation with the United Nations," he said.
Sudan "should not be the first recolonized country under the banner of humanitarian action in Darfur." He added that AU troops in Sudan are in conformity with Chapter VIII of the UN Charter, which grants regional organizations jurisdiction over conflict affecting their geographic areas. "The African Union is there," he said, "so why don't we have funding from the United Nations?"
Bashir estimates that AU troops currently in Sudan will need only an additional two regiments to effectively carry out their mandate. That adequate funding has not been provided by the UN shows, in his view, that Western nations have intentions of their own. "Our conviction is that they have another agenda," he stated.
He also denounced the Western media as being unfairly biased against his government. "The media is spreading false information," he said. "We are not saying that there aren't any IDPs [internally displaced people]...we can say right now that in Darfur there are only 5 [out of 22] localities affected by the conflict...What has happened in Darfur is a traditional conflict that escalated."
For him, the Abuja agreement remains the main framework of reference for all parties involved in the conflict. "If we implemented the Abuja agreement," he said, "we wouldn't need the current level of AU troops." Signed in May between the government and the main rebel group, the Abuja agreement set up a power-sharing agreement, and it also established a process of disarmament and reinsertion for former combatants. To date, at least one rebel group, the National Redemption Front, has not signed onto the accord. "We invite those who haven't signed the Abuja agreement to come to the negotiation table," Bashir said.
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Bashir also denied involvement in the recent turmoil in the neighboring countries of Chad and the Central African Republic. He said he was "surprised" when the Chadian government issued a statement alleging Sudanese involvement. "We do not have a single element in Chad," he said.
He blamed armed groups in opposition to the Chadian government for the conflict there. "This is purely Chadian opposition."
He explained that these groups had taken refuge in southern Sudan, however his government asked them to disarm or leave, which they eventually did, sparking a wave of violence in Chad. "Once they entered Chad, it is no longer the responsibility of Sudan," Bashir said.
Meanwhile, the UN dispatched a fact-finding team to Chad and the Central African Republic to assess the security and humanitarian situation on their borders.
