FRIDAY, 5.00PM
UNITED States special envoy Paul Hare arrived in Angola on Friday in an attempt to restart the country’s stalled peace process.
Hare intends separately meeting President Jose Eduardo dos Santos and Unita rebel leader Jonmas Savimbi, as well as with international mediators. “We came to see what can we do to help,” Hare said on his arrival.
United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan is so concerned about the peace process that last week he recommended suspending the withdrawal of UN peacekeeping troops from Angola. The UN Security Council mostly blames Savimbi for the slow pace of demobilisation of combatants and warned on Thursday that it is drafting new sanctions to impose on Unita if peace is not brought back on track.
UN officials accuse Unita of not providing accurate information about its military strength, and not allowing the extension of government administration into areas it controls.
The United Nations imposed a weapons and fuel embargo on Unita four years ago, but the sanctions have had little effect because many countries have ignored them. Additional sanctions might include a travel ban on Savimbi and his top aides, a Security Council source said.
The three countries overseeing Angola’s peace agreement — the United States, Portugal and Russia — will decide what new sanctions to recommend, and the Security Council could vote on it as early as next week.
It is believed that at least part of Savimbi’s recalcitrance relates to his wish to maintain control of diamond mines held by Unita.
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