Prime Minister blames Liberia for attacks

Officials from Guinea and Liberia are to hold talks before the end of the week to reduce the tension between the two countries that has endangered some 500,000 refugees living in Guinea, reports said Wednesday.

The announcement of the talks followed discussions between Malian President Alpha Oumar Konare, chairman of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), and Liberian President Charles Taylor and Guinean President Lansana Conte in Monrovia and Conakry respectively.

The president of Sierra Leone, Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, met with Conte on Tuesday in Conakry. While armed men from Sierra Leone, as well as Liberia, are accused of carrying out the cross-border attacks that have raised regional tension, the dispute is largely between Liberia and Guinea. Each country has accused the other of harbouring dissidents seeking to destabilize its government.

Konare was quoted by AFP after his meetings with Taylor and Conte as saying "hope was permitted" regarding resolving the dispute. "I think his coming will help to lower tension in the sub-region," Taylor told the BBC.

Guinea's prime minister, Lamine Sidime, on Tuesday blamed Liberia for the recent attacks. "Everything points to the fact that it is an external aggression from Liberia which has, for years, been preparing to engage in war with Guinea," Lamine told Radio France Internationale. He accused Burkina Faso of complicity.