JK just tweeted that he's in Ca...

KHARTOUM (AFP) – US Senator John Kerry on Friday warned of tougher sanctions against Sudan if the governments of north or south placed obstacles in the way of a January 9 referendum on southern independence.

"I want to be clear, we want the government (Khartoum) to tackle the referendum and respect the decision of the south," Kerry told reporters after arriving in the Sudanese capital.

"If one of the parties choose to go on the wrong track on the coming negotiations in Addis Ababa, there are many options available to us, to raise up sanctions, to move within the international community to address our concerns," he said.

A new round of north-south negotiations is set for the Ethiopian capital on October 27, following the announcement on October 12 of the failure of a first round of talks.

Before leaving Washington on his three-day mission to assess the strife-torn country's readiness for the independence referendum, Kerry said Sudan was "at a pivotal moment."

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Kerry to Speak at Yale University
Delivers Address on Climate Change, Speaks to Students on New START Treaty
For Immediate Release: Friday, October 22, 2010

CONTACT: DC Press Office, (202) 224-4159

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Senator John Kerry (D-Mass.), Chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and Yale ’66 Alumnus, will deliver a speech on Monday, October 25 to the Yale Political Union on the need for U.S. action to address global climate change.

“Safeguarding the environment must become a real priority for the global community, and no one understands that better than this generation of young people, and they’re the ones that are going to push us to make something happen,” said Sen. Kerry.

Kerry, who served as President of the Union in 1964, will also lead a conversation on the New START Treaty with Yale’s student chapter of Global Zero, a campaign aimed to eliminate nuclear weapons.

“College students across the country are pushing politicians to do the right thing by supporting New START,” Kerry added. “I applaud their efforts and look forward to speaking with Yale students who are hard at work urging ratification of this important treaty. By lending their voices and enthusiasm, these students are helping to create momentum that will make America safer.”