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To: Tommaso who wrote (95353)	7/4/2002 9:05:56 PM
From: LARRY LARSON	Respond to of 95453

Kansteiner Optimistic as Peace Talks Enter Critical Stage By Albino Okeny Khartoum Monitor July 4, 2002 The visiting United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Walter Kansteiner, told newspaper editors in Khartoum Tuesday night that he was optimistic that peace would be realized in Sudan. Despite his optimism Kansteiner warned that peace could not be achieved overnight. “It is not easy for people who have been at war for nearly 20 years to suddenly stop fighting,” the American official said. He likened people who are at war to tobacco addicts who need time to stop smoking. In his assessment, President Omar Beshir and the leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA) John Garang were only genuinely looking for ways to end the war. According to the Assistant Secretary of State, the current peace talks in Kenyan between the government and the SPLA have given some indicators for optimism. “The way the negotiators interact at the talks shows that they are beginning to build trust in each other,” remarked Kansteiner. He told the editors that as the peace talks were gearing towards substantive issues, there would be great pressure on the warring parties from the international community to ensure their success. As regard the escalation of the war during the talks, the American diplomat said that it did not mean that the two sides were opting for a military solution. “It is part of the negotiation strategies,” he explained. Commenting on the issue of self-determination for the people of Southern Sudan, the American official said the United States supports it but he qualified it by saying that self-determination as understood by the United States did not necessarily mean secession of the South from the rest of the country. One of the main topics Kansteiner discussed with President Beshir was humanitarian assistance to war affected population. “We view the denial by the government of relief supplies to some parts of the country with concern,” he told journalists. He said during his talks with President Beshir, he was assured that the government would allow 18 more locations to receive relief supplies. “But I stressed to the government that the whole country should be open to receive relief assistance wherever it is needed,” Kansteiner said. On the bilateral level, the talks between the American official and the Sudanese leader centred on cooperation to combat international terrorism. But because of the sensitivity of the subject, Kansteiner declined to disclose what transpired between them.