Originally published by the Voice of America (www.voanews.com).
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June 25, 2007

France Hosts International Conference on Darfur
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http://enews.voanews.com/t?ctl=17EF8E7:A6F02AD83191E1603B7DF810AE84EAD39574F7DCC14957C0 Among those
participating are U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and U.N.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, as well as representatives from China





The key participants to the one-day conference on Darfur, at the
Elysee Palace in Paris, Monday, 25 June 2007France is hosting a major
international conference on the crisis in Darfur. Among those
participating are U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and U.N.
Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, as well as  representatives from China,
which is the biggest investor in Sudan and has considerable clout
there. But African leaders have refused to attend.  Anita Elash
reports for VOA from Paris.

Until recently, France has largely ignored the crisis in Darfur. But
new French President Nicolas Sarkozy and new Foreign Minister Bernard
Kouchner have made it one of the government's top priorities.

More than a dozen countries are attending Moday's conference. U.S.
Secretary of State Rice and U.N. Secretary General Ban Kyi Moon will
be there.  So will representatives from China,  which is the biggest
investor in Sudan and has considerable clout there. When Ms. Rice
arrived for the conference, Sunday, she said the world has failed the
people in the Darfur region.

"We need to generate the forces in the U.N. so that we can get them
in.  We need to support the African Union forces that are there," Rice
said. "There is a lot to do;  but I would be the first to say that I
do not think the international community has yet discharged its
responsibilities very effectively."

The conference has two goals:  to try to accelerate the deployment of
a United Nations / African Union peacekeeping force;  and to try to
restart the peaceprocess between the Sudanese government and rebel
factions.

The conference is not well-supported in Africa.  The Sudanese
government was not invited and members of the African Union say it is
a distraction and haverefused to attend.


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