France rules out the use of force in Darfur

France has ruled out resorting to the military option in order to solve the crisis in Darfur. It welcomed the resumption of the dialogue between Khartoum government and Darfur rebels on August 23 in Abouja, Nigeria.

The French ambassador in Sudan, Dominique Reno, said in a statement to the press that his country called repeatedly the two sides to return back to the table of negotiations and called on the African states to solve their own problems within the context of the African federation.

Reno commended the African federation and said it had a basic role in solving the crisis in Darfur by honoring the cease fire and organizing the negotiations between the two sides.

He considered that Sudan showed good intention in his relations with the UN through the agreement it had finalized with the UN secretary general Kofi Annan on the work to allow the humanitarian aid to the area.

He indicated that the aim of deploying 200 members if the French forces in the eastern part of Chad is purely humanitarian and was made at the request of the UN and the UNHCR. Reno denied that these French forces has a military mission in that area.