US Envoy Hopeful Sudanese Government, Rebels will Sign Peace Agreement

A truly ugly mess, I'm not that hopeful, there is oil,
plenty of it, in Sudan.

The U.S. special envoy to Sudan
says the next few weeks will be
crucial in determining whether
talks between government and
rebel forces will bring an end to
Sudan's two decades of civil war.
The envoy, former U.S. Senator
John Danforth, spoke to reporters
Friday in Nairobi.

President Bush named John
Danforth as his special envoy to
Sudan two years ago. This is the
fifth time since his appointment that Mr. Danforth has visited
the region.

In his remarks Friday, Mr. Danforth said he believed that the
Sudanese government and the rebels of the Sudan People's
Liberation Army would soon be able to work out the details
that have yet to be settled in an agreement they signed last
year. But he also said the two sides must make a real
commitment to peace.

"I've said to President Bush that I think this is the end game,
that we are very close, that we will know very soon whether
there is the prospect of peace, whether there's going to be a
peace agreement," he said. "And if there isn't, as his
representative, I don't know what else I can do."

VOA