Al-Bashir welcomes the American role

The Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has reiterated his country's welcome to the American role to solving the Sudanese question.

In press statements he made on Sunday, the Sudanese president said that there are two trends inside the US concerning relations with the Sudanese government. The first calls for resuming the old policy in pressuring the government in Sudan to quit it and the second calls for maintaining ties with the current government in Sudan.

The Sudanese president described the first trend in the US administration as very strong, behind which a strong administration stands.

Al-Bashir also expressed his hope that the US President George Bush will not approve the resolution of the US Congress not to support the opposition coalition in Sudan by USD 10 million. Al-Bashir said:" we will have contacts with Bush on this matter in the framework of the dialogue taking place between the two countries."

The Sudanese President denied any crisis of " coolness " in the Sudanese- Egyptian relations. He stressed that what has been rumored on a " silence crisis" between the two states is not correct.

He said that the joint Libyan- Egyptian initiative concerning Sudan has not moved, rather stumbled because of the weak response by the Sudanese opposition coalition to this initiative and its reservations towards this initiative.