SUDANESE Foreign Minister Mustafa Ismail tried to reassure Canada’s Talisman oil company on Thursday, saying his government appreciates its efforts in oil operations and services to people around the oilfields, in remarks to the press. He said the government had not received official word from Talisman that it was planning to sell its shares in the Greater Nile Petroleum Operating Company in response to recent US pressures on oil companies to stop operating in Sudan. The Foreign Minister noted, however, that a pullout by Talisman “will not affect the oil project in Sudan and there are tens of companies willing to replace or buy the shares of any company that wants to quit.” – AFP