Sudan urged to allow U.N. peacekeepers
China urged Sudan to accept the deployment of United Nations peacekeepers in Darfur, increasing pressure on a key economic partner that Beijing has been criticized for protecting.
“Our position toward Darfur is clear. We have exercised all possible efforts, political, economic and others and advised our Sudanese brothers to accept [former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi] Annan’s plan,” China’s assistant foreign minister, Zhai Jun, said after meeting with Sudanese President Omar Hassan Ahmed Bashir.
China buys two-thirds of Sudan’s oil exports, sells it weapons and military aircraft, and has been criticized for not using its influence to do more to stop the crisis in the Darfur region.
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