EASTERN FRONT DELAYS PARTICIPATION IN TRIPOLI TALKS

C O N F I D E N T I A L KHARTOUM 000278

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR AF/SPG

E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/06/2016
TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM SU
SUBJECT: EASTERN FRONT DELAYS PARTICIPATION IN TRIPOLI TALKS

REF: 05 KHARTOUM 00941

Classified By: POL: L. Wahid, Reason: Section 1.4 (b) and (d)


1. (C) On February 5, we spoke with Dr. Amna Dirar, Vice
President of the Eastern Front, who said the Eastern Front
had decided to delay participation in the scheduled
negotiations with the Sudanese Government in Tripoli because
certain pre-conditions had not been met. Dirar said these
were to add Eritrea as a co-mediator with Libya, to invite
international observers, and to send a GNU negotiating team,
rather than one dominated by the National Congress Party.


2. (C) Dirar said that the Libyans were &up to their usual
tricks,8 and referred to a Libyan plan to release 16 GOS
soldiers to the Sudanese government during the negotiations
(reftel). The 16 were detained during an Eastern Front
attack on Tokar in June 2005; the Eastern Front had
transferred the detained soldiers to the Libyans earlier, and
the Libyans were using their release as a well timed
deliverable for the Sudanese government. She also noted that
Libyan representatives in Sudan refused to speak with her;
she instead received information about the details of the
negotiations from the Eastern Front, which is based in
Asmara.


3. (U) Tripoli minimize considered.
HUME