Ethiopian, Kenyan FMs Discuss Bilateral Initiatives, Regional Peace
ADDIS ABABA – Deputy Primer and Foreign Minister Demeke Mekonnen held talks with his Kenyan counterpart Alfred Mutua over various bilateral and regional issues including a regional effort to resolve the conflict in Sudan.
Demeke received Kenya’s Foreign and Diaspora Affairs minister Mutua at his office in Addis Ababa on Tuesday.
During this bilateral meeting, Kenya’s top diplomat said “We deliberated on how to take the wonderful relations between our two nations to an even higher level.”
“We also exchanged documents relating to our bilateral initiatives that will open up wonderful opportunities for our people,” Mutua said in a tweet.
The two foreign ministers also “compared notes on regional issues and exchanged ideas on the way forward for the establishment of peace and security, especially in Sudan”, the Kenyan FM disclosed.
Their meeting took place a day after the IGAD Heads of State summit which adopted a communique with a four point action plan to resolve the crisis.
The assembly included Ethiopia into its high level delegation for peace in Sudan and tasked Kenyan President William Ruto to Chair the Quartet’s work in close coordination with the African Union.
“We have taken the decision that the quartet of Kenya, Ethiopia, South Sudan and Somalia, will, in the next ten days, meet face to face with General Al-Burhan and General Daglo…so that we can speak to them directly on behalf of Igad , with the view of stopping the war that is raging,” Ruto told reporters in Djibouti city on Monday.
The action plan also seeks to initiate an inclusive political process towards a political settlement of the conflict within three weeks.
The deadly armed clashes between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces broke out in mid April in Khartoum and spread to other parts of the country, with the two sides accusing each other of initiating the conflict.
