President Deby, Sudanese envoy meet with Obasanjo over tensions

President Idriss Deby of Chad met with Olusegun Obasanjo, Nigerian president and head of the African Union, in Nigeria on Tuesday, as part of efforts to defuse tensions between Chad and neighbouring Sudan. The meeting comes days after the Chadian government declared “a state of belligerence” between itself and Sudan following a deadly border attack Chad blamed on the Sudanese government. Deby’s visit – as a guest at Obasanjo’s farm in southwestern Nigeria – coincided with a visit by a Sudanese special envoy, Obasanjo’s spokesperson Remi Oyo told IRIN. “In his capacity as AU chairman, [Obasanjo] held separate talks with both Idriss Deby and the Sudanese president’s special envoy on issues that appear to be the areas of conflict between the two neighbours,” Oyo said. Chad and Sudan have long traded accusations, each side saying the other is supporting rebel movements. Most recently, Chad blamed Sudan for a 18 December attack on the eastern Chadian town of Adre. On Monday Deby told reporters in the Chadian capital, N’djamena, that the Sudanese goverment was preparing fresh attacks, saying Sudan has sent 50 military vehicles to el-Geneina in its western Darfur region. Deby made the remarks after briefing Central African Republic President Francis Bozize about the situation with Sudan, which Deby called "a threat to the sub-region." “We cannot rule out the government in [the Sudanese capital] Khartoum launching a new attack on Chad,” Deby said. “This is what they are preparing at el-Geneina.” Deby added, "This is a concern, not only for Chad but for all of Sudan's neighbours." Bozize told reporters, “Everything that happens in Chad has repercussions for the Central African Republic.” An AU delegation visited N’djamena at the weekend, with plans to continue on to Sudan. Chad communications minister Moussa Doumgor, speaking to reporters on Friday, called on the AU, the Community of Sahel and Saharan States and the Central African Economic and Monetary Union to condemn Sudan, which he said armed and equipped the rebels that attacked Adre, “in new Toyotas with heavy weapons provided by the Sudanese defense minister.” Chad has repeatedly insisted on its right to pursue rebels beyond its border and said after the Adre attack that it chased rebels back into Sudan and destroyed some bases there. Deby, a former army officer, faces mounting dissension within the Chadian armed forces. Since October he has been struggling to keep a lid on groups of soldiers deserting their posts and fleeing east to join rebel movements. Some 200,000 men, women and children who fled fighting in Sudan’s Darfur region are living in refugee camps in eastern Chad.