UN warns of challenges in implementation of peace accord in Sudan

Many challenges face the signatories to the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) that ended a 21-year civil war between northern and southern Sudan, said Ashraf Qazi, the UN secretary-general's special representative, on Wednesday after a meeting with Sudanese First Vice President Salva Kiir Mayardit, according to a UN news release. Qazi, who also heads the UN Mission in Sudan (UNMIS), made the remarks ahead of a meeting in the United States on the Sudan issue scheduled for late June. "I had a very good meeting with the president and this is an important time because we all are preparing for the conference that will take place in Washington later this month," he said during a one-day visit to Juba, capital of Southern Sudan. "The United States has taken the initiative to act in concert with the international community to help both signatories implement the CPA on schedule because the CPA time period will be completed in 2011," Qazi added, Kazinform cites Xinhua. See www.chinaview.cn for full version.