British minister holds talks with Sudanese officials

British International Development minister Lynn Featherstone has returned from Sudan after holdings talks with governmental officials and visiting the Darfur region to observe projects funded by the United Kingdom. In a press conference held at the headquarters of the British embassy in Khartoum, the minister said that the United Kingdom has deep historical relations with the Sudanese people and the Government of Sudan. "Our focus in Sudan is on helping eradicate poverty and the reduction of conflicts. We are ready to play a constructive role and devote our efforts to peace and development in Sudan," said the British minister. Featherstone confirmed that achieving peace and security is the responsibility of everyone in the community, and she revealed that the British Department for International Development aims to give 800,000 people access to clean drinking water and develop the skills of a further 800,000 by 2015. The British minister held talks with the under-secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Rahamtallah Mohamed Osman about relations between Sudan and South Sudan, and the obstacles to the implementation of the comprehensive cooperation agreement signed between the two countries last September. She also discussed the developments in South Kordofan with focus on the humanitarian crisis and the situation of public freedoms and human rights in light of the efforts to draft a permanent constitution for Sudan. Ambassador Rahamtallah said that his country is keen to build good relations with the Republic of South Sudan, stressing that the non-compliance of Juba to terms of the agreement is the main obstacle between the two countries. He said that South Sudan is reluctant to support the plans of joint action to exempt Sudan’s foreign debt according to what was agreed upon in the oil agreement signed in September last year in Addis Ababa. He also confirmed that there is no humanitarian problem in the areas under the government control in the state of South Kordofan which have seen fighting led by Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North since 2011. In the meeting, they discussed the steps to draft a permanent constitution in the country, and the Sudanese under-secretary told the British Minister of his willingness to involve all political forces and civil society organisations in the dialogue regarding the draft constitution.