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Togo agrees to mediate

[Nigeria] Ijaw militants loyal to Dokubo Asari display their guns and magic charms in Okoronta village in the Niger Delta in July 2004 George Osodi/IRIN

Togolese President Gnassingbe Eyadema yesterday agreed to mediate in the Sierra Leone conflict, according to his Sierra Leone counterpart Alhaji Ahmad Tejan Kabbah. News reports quoted Kabbah as saying the Togolese president - as current chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) - was the right person to tackle the issue. He was speaking after talks with Eyadema in the northern Togolese town of Kara. Togo has been proposed as a venue for Sankoh to meet his commanders, ahead of peace talks with the government.

Kabbah arrived in Abuja today for talks with Nigerian leaders, including president-elect Olusegun Obasanjo. Nigeria has said it may withdraw its troops from the ECOMOG peacekeeping force by the end of May, although British Foreign Secretary Robin Cook, who is also visiting Nigeria, urged the authorities to keep the troops in Sierra Leone and pledged financial assistance, Nigerian officials said, according to Reuters.


This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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