Washington steps up pressure on Sudan even as Khartoum coordinates policies with its neighbours, writes Gamal Nkrumah Sudanese President Omar Hassan Al-Beshir met Chadian President Idris Deby in the capital of West Darfur state, Al-Junayna, a remote frontier post barely 20 kilometres from the Chadian border, to coordinate border-control policies between the two countries. Chad shares a 1,000-kilometre border with Sudan and is one of the countries most immediately impacted by the war in Sudan. The ethnic composition of Chad -- which includes the settled agricultural non-Arab groups and nomadic Arab tribes found in Darfur -- closely resembles that of Darfur; the main ethnic groups inhabiting Darfur are also found in western and central Chad. The Chadian president himself is a member of the Zaghawa ethnic group which inhabits a huge swathe of territory across the Sahara Desert in Chad, Libya and Sudan. With an ever-increasing number of Sudanese refugees pouring across the border into Chad, tensions have increased in the rugged border region between the two countries. Last month, the Chadian authorities accused Sudan of failing to rein in ethnic Arab Janjaweed militias who were terrorising both the indigenous non- Arab population in Darfur as well as those refugees who have sought shelter in Chad. Chad warned that it would not tolerate the Janjaweed militias' infiltration of its territory. Chadian forces have sporadically clashed with the dreaded Janjaweed militias over the past six months. "It was important for us to station troops along the Chadian- Sudanese border to patrol the frontier region so we can stop these incursions from one side or the other by people conducting raids," President Deby told Chadian state radio. The Sudanese authorities in turn pledged to maintain peace along the border. "We will be working to secure the border between the two nations in coordination with the tribal and popular leaderships, as well as parliamentarians from both countries," Sudanese President Al- Beshir was quoted as saying. Meanwhile, Washington's patience with the Sudanese authorities seems to be fast running out. "We need immediate improvement in the situation and if we don't see that, then the US and the international community will have to consider further measures," warned US Secretary of State Colin Powell. Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Ismail warned Washington not to spark an "Iraq-style crisis" over the ongoing civil war in Darfur. In a widely publicised interview on Egypt's Sawt Al-Arab radio station, the Sudanese foreign minister said that "the situation in the refugee camps in Darfur has considerably improved." According to Ismail, 3,000 police officers have been dispatched to Darfur and another 3,000 will be deployed in the near future. "We are sending security forces from southern Sudan to Darfur," Ismail added. The Sudanese police force now stationed in Darfur protect corridors for emergency relief convoys currently used by international aid agencies. The deployment of this 6,000-strong joint border patrol force is an unprecedented development. But does Khartoum have the political will and the military capacity to rein in the Janjaweed militia? The deployment of the Sudanese police force was regarded suspiciously by the Sudan Liberation Army (SLA) the main armed opposition group in Darfur. The SLA claims that the Sudanese government has violated the cease-fire 70 times since signing the truce in April this year. They say that the Sudanese government and allied Janjaweed militias burned villages in the vicinity of Nyala and Al-Dayen in South Darfur state. SLA leader Abdul-Wahid Mohamed Nour paid tribute to the international community for the provision of humanitarian relief assistance to the civilian population of Darfur. But he said that the people of Darfur hope to see international political intervention in Darfur as well. Nour also claimed that the Sudanese government is providing the Janjaweed militia with police and military identity cards. Indeed, he warned that many Janjaweed are routinely enlisted in the regular Sudanese army. The Darfur crisis caused a commotion at the United Nations. Many countries are opposed to a US-drafted resolution to impose sanctions on Sudan. Pakistan, Algeria, Brazil, Russia and China do not want to see international sanctions imposed on Sudan. The US, however, is pushing for comprehensive sanctions against Sudan, with most other Western countries favouring instead a partial embargo. Britain, France and Germany would prefer to see a ban on arms only.
