Abdel Wahid el-Nur/Darfur - France in the United States / Embassy of France in Washington, D.C.
I welcome the statement, broadcast from Paris on 8 July by Al Jazeera, made by Abdel Wahid el-Nur, leader of the Sudan Liberation Movement (SLM), in which he pledges from now on to give his total support to the negotiating process on peace in Darfur taking place in Doha under the Qatari Government’s auspices.
Indeed, during our meeting yesterday evening at the Quai d’Orsay, Abdel Wahid el-Nur confirmed his intention to contribute actively to the peace process in Darfur, both personally and through his representatives.
The SLM leader’s new position is the result of long months of talks organized at the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs with Abdel Wahid el-Nur. I am very pleased that he has at last decided to give peace a chance.
I encourage the members of the Sudan Liberation Movement to unite behind this position and play a constructive role in promoting peace in Darfur both on the ground and in Doha. It is time to put an end to the Darfuri people’s tragic situation.
This success also crowns the action of Ahmad Bin Abdullah Al-Mahmoud, Qatari Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Djibril Bassolé, Joint United Nations and African Union Mediator [for Darfur], who have expended tireless efforts on promoting peace in Darfur.
France thanks them, congratulates them and reiterates to them her wholehearted support./.