China’s Hu reiterates support for Sudan
CHINA: Chinese President Hu Jintao on Wednesday reiterated China’s
support for Sudan, whose president has been accused of genocide in
Darfur, ahead of his trip to Africa next week.
Rights groups say China, which last year imported $6.3 billion of
Sudanese crude oil, has failed to do enough to stop bloodshed in Darfur
and has violated a U.N. arms embargo on the region.
China denies the charges and has appointed its own envoy to try to
bring peace to Darfur.
“China is willing to make joint efforts with Sudan to carry on their
traditional friendship, boost pragmatic cooperation and push friendly
cooperation to a new high,” the official Xinhua news agency quoted Hu as
telling Sudan President Omar Hassan al-Bashir.
In July, the chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court
asked judges to issue an arrest warrant for Bashir, accusing him of
orchestrating genocide in Darfur where international experts say
fighting has killed 200,000 people.
China has said a war crimes indictment against Bashir would have a
“disastrous” impact on the Darfur conflict and has called for the case
to be postponed.
Hu, who sent the message to Bashir to mark the anniversary of
establishing diplomatic ties, did not mention the war crimes case
specifically.
“China respects Sudan’s sovereignty and territorial integrity,”
Xinhua paraphrased Hu as saying. “China also supports the African
country’s efforts to realise national reconciliation, advance the peace
process, develop the national economy and improve people’s living
standards.
Beijing,Reuters
|