Tanzanian President Jakaya Kikwete on Friday said his talks with Zimbabwe’s embattled leader Robert Mugabe on Thursday were a ”great success”.
Kikwete flew into Harare for a day to mediate between Mugabe and the opposition following international outcry over the arrest and beating of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai.
But speaking after the two men’s meeting, Mugabe brushed aside worldwide condemnation saying that his critics could ”go hang”.
A statement from Kikwete’s office on Friday however said the talks ”were a great success”.
”We have exchanged views on many issues, and agreed on the way forward but we should be given time,” the statement quoted Kikwete as saying.
It said Kikwete briefed Mugabe on his recent tour of several European countries where ”developments in Zimbabwe dominated most of the meetings between me and the European leaders”.
Kikwete said Mugabe had briefed him on the political situtaion in Zimbabwe including last weekend’s clashes between police and opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) leaders.
”We have agreed on the way forward, but it is between me and Mugabe,” he said.
Tanzania, along with Namibia and Lesotho, is charged with dealing with the Zimbabwe crisis within the Southern African Development Community (SADC).
Reaction from the 14-nation regional bloc to events in Zimbabwe has been muted, though South Africa eased off its normal policy of ‘quiet diplomacy’ by calling on the government to respect the rights of political leaders.
Members of bloc’s peace and security organisation would meet on March 26 in Dar es Salaam, he added.
”This is the troika meeting and afterwards I believe we will be able to discuss peace and security in the region including in Zimbabwe,” Tanzanian Foreign Minister Bernard Membe told a news conference.
Mugabe has accused the MDC of instigating the weekend violence, while Tsvangirai was discharged from hospital Friday following his arrest for trying to attend a banned demonstration on Sunday. – Reuters