UN and African Union close to deal on Darfur troops

UNITED NATIONS, June 6 (Reuters) The United Nations and the African Union reached tentative agreement today on a 23,000-strong peacekeeping force for Darfur by glossing over a a dispute on who controls the operation.

The deal, contained in a report to the UN Security Council, still has to be endorsed by the African Union's Peace and Security Committee as well as the council, despite UN claims on May 25 that approval of the operation was now up to Khartoum only.

At issue is who should lead and pay for the expanded peacekeeping mission to bolster the beleaguered 7,000 African Union troops now in Darfur. Khartoum has insisted the force be under AU command but UN members cover its cost.

While the United Nations has chosen African commanders, its revised proposal said more clarity was needed on command and control, as demanded by troop contributing bodies and UN financial bodies.

But the original proposal also said some UN control was required ''given the Security Council's primary responsibility for authorizing, and the UN's direct responsibility for implementing the mandate.'' This sentence has now been deleted at the request of the African Union, diplomats said.

''You will see that there are some modulations, but we will have to take it up in the consultations to see whether that is command and control as we see it,'' said Johan Verbeke, Belgium's UN ambassador, who is this month's president of the Security Council.

SANCTIONS? The new revisions have now been approved by Alpha Oumar Konare, chairman of the African Union Commission, the secretariat of the 53-nation body and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, according to a letter from Ban.

Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir has agreed in principle to a three-phase UN plan to strengthen the African troops. But he had delayed for five months acceptance of plans for the second stage of 3,000 military and police personnel and has criticized the proposed 23,000-strong force of troops and police as too large.

There are concerns that Khartoum will again drag its feet on the large force, known as a ''hybrid'' operation, hence the United States and Britain are considering sanctions following US unilateral penalties toward Sudan.

Introducing a sanctions resolution would also depend on access of humanitarian groups and other developments in Darfur, a region in Sudan's West the size of France where experts estimate 200,000 people have died and more than 2 million expelled from their homes in the last four years.

But at this point, council diplomats say there is no majority in the 15-member body for additional sanctions.

Council ambassadors intend to talk to Bashir on June 17, during their week's tour to five African nations.

The measures under consideration are an arms embargo over the entire country, the monitoring of flights at Sudanese airports and a total prohibition of military flights over Darfur. The two nations also seek to add names to the list of four individuals now subject to financial and travel bans.

Still, delay by the African Union means Khartoum has not yet been presented with formal plans for the large force.

Its consent is necessary before deployment because the United Nations, which already has problems finding enough troops, cannot shoot its way into Darfur.

Non-Arab rebels took up arms in Darfur in early 2003, accusing the government of not heeding their plight. Khartoum armed some Arab militia, known as Janjaweed, who raped, killed and pillaged.

In the last year both Arab and non-Arab tribes have been fighting among themselves, shattering an earlier peace accord.

REUTERS AM RK2255