China confirms will deploy engineers to Darfur

BEIJING, May 8 (Reuters) China confirmed today that it would send engineers as part of a U.N. deployment to bolster the struggling African Union peacekeeping force in Sudan's strife-torn Darfur region.

The US State Department yesterday said that China would send hundreds of engineers as part of a ''hybrid'' force to try to stop the violence in Darfur, where the United Nations says about 200,000 people have died and 2.5 million have been displaced since 2003.

China's foreign ministry spokeswoman Jiang Yu confirmed the engineers would be sent to Sudan but did not provide any specifics about numbers or the date of their deployment.

''China is willing to work with the rest of the international community for peace and stability in Darfur,'' Jiang told a news conference.

A U.S. official who spoke on condition he not be named said there would be about 300 people in the contingent.

The conflict in Darfur, an ethnically-mixed region of western Sudan, ignited when rebel groups took up arms against the government, accusing it of neglect.

In August, the UN Security Council approved a ''hybrid'' force of more than 20,000 troops and police to try to stop the violence in Darfur.

Sudan agreed recently to a ''heavy support package'' for the African Union troops in Darfur that would include some 3,500 military and police personnel.

Jiang also fended off questions about reports that China was continuing to sell arms to Sudan, saying that China has strict rules about its arms exports.

China, which buys most of Sudan's oil, has been accused of refusing to use its influence over Khartoum for fear of harmin its economic and energy ties.

REUTERS AGL ND1402