Visiting Secretary-General of the United Nations Ban Ki-moon anticipated on Thursday that all the rebel groups in the conflict-torn western Sudanese region of Darfur would participate in the next round of peace talks.
"I believe that all the (rebel) movements which have not signed the Darfur Peace Agreement (DPA) will take part in the next negotiations," Ban said at a joint press conference with Sudanese Foreign Minister Lam Akol.
He urged the conflicting parties in Darfur to be seriously committed to ending the hostilities between them in order to reach a political solution to the Darfur issue.
The UN chief and Sudanese President Omer al-Bashir announced in a joint communique issued at the end of their meeting earlier Thursday that the peace talks between the Sudanese government and the Darfur rebel movements would resume on Oct. 27 in Libya.
The Darfur peace process has been deadlocked since the Sudanese government and a main rebel faction signed the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in the Nigerian capital Abuja in May 2006.
The UN chief also expressed his appreciation for the Sudanese government's commitment to and cooperation in installing peace in Darfur, as well as its readiness for the next peace negotiations and keenness for their success.
Moreover, Ban reiterated the desire of the world body to cooperate with the African Union to achieve a comprehensive political solution to the Darfur issue.
The Sudanese foreign minister, on his part, called on all the Darfur rebel groups to participate constructively in the next peace negotiations.
He described the establishment of the place and date of the next round peace talks as "a big progress" following a series of meetings and consultations among the parties concerned.
Ban arrived in Khartoum on Monday on his first official visit in the African country since he took office in January this year. He held two meetings with the Sudanese president and paid a field tour in southern Sudan and Darfur.
Source: Xinhua
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