Washington DC, United States - As part of efforts to bolster the North-South and Darfur peace process in Sudan, two US envoys are due to travel to the African nation this month, the US State Department said. In a statement here late Tuesday, the Department said Ambassador Princeton Lyman, U.S. Senior Adviser on North-South Negotiations, and Ambassador Dane Smith, U.S. Senior Adviser on Darfur, would travel to the region in early March to support U.S. efforts to promote peace and stability in Sudan.

Ambassador Lyman will travel to Sudan from Ethiopia, where is participating in five days of talks between the National Congress Party (NCP) and the Sudan People's Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM) - chaired by the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel - on post-referendum economic issues.

'Throughout these discussions, Lyman will encourage the parties to finalize arrangements that will ensure a peaceful and cooperative North-South relationship after Southern Sudan’s independence.

'Following the talks in Addis, Ambassador Lyman will then travel to Khartoum and Juba to encourage progress on other outstanding Comprehensive Peace Agreement issues, including resolving the status of Abyei and advancing popular consultations for Blue Nile and Southern Kordofan,' the statement said.

On his part, Ambassador Dane Smith was billed to depart Wednesday (2March) for Doha, Qatar, where he will assess the state of on-going negotiations between the Government of Sudan and the Darfur rebel movements, and will urge the parties to reach a just, durable political agreement that addresses the root causes of the Darfur conflict.

'Following his visit to Doha, Ambassador Smith will continue on to Khartoum, where he will meet with Sudanese leaders to discuss the link between the negotiations in Doha and a consultative political process on the ground, access issues for UNAMID and international NGOs, and opportunities for early recovery and voluntary returns.

'Ambassador Smith will then travel to Darfur, where he will visit El Fasher, El Geneina, and Nyala, and assess the security and humanitarian situation in several rural villages and internally displaced persons’ camps,' the statement said.

Pana 03/03/2011