Strengthening bilateral relations

Bilateral relations, the DRC war and peace efforts were the main focus of a two-day visit to Sudan by Kabila, Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Uthman Isma’il told a news conference yesterday. While in Sudan, Kabila - who left yesterday - met his Sudanese counterpart, President Omar al Bashir, Sudanese radio reported. Isma’il emphasized Khartoum’s rejection of what he termed Ugandan interference in the DRC’s internal affairs and expressed his country’s support for the position of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on the conflict. The Sudan Embassy’s spokesman in Nairobi, Al Mansour Bolad, said his government regarded the DRC as a friend. “We support DRC politically and recognise its legitimacy,” he told IRIN today. “Because of our internal wars we cannot afford to support DRC militarily. Our wish would be that the problem in the country is solved through peaceful means,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian news agency, MENA, reported today that DRC Foreign Minister Jean Charles Okoto Lola Kombe had left Egypt at the end of a brief visit. Besides meeting President Hosni Mubarak, Kombe discussed with Egyptian officials several African issues, international affairs and prospects for bilateral cooperation in various spheres.