Chinese foreign minister visits North and South Sudan

China was not only a key ally of undivided Sudan through the difficult years of the US economic sanctions since 1997, it remains a major military supplier to the regime in Khartoum.

It is also one of the largest foreign investors in the now divided country and the biggest buyer of Sudanese oil.

Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes in Darfur, made a trip to Beijing just before the secession of the South last month.

"China's policy towards Sudan will not change, whatever the pressure and internal and external changes," the semi-official Sudan Media Center quoted the Chinese foreign minister as saying shortly after his arrival in Khartoum late on Sunday.

"China will continue its support for infrastructure projects in the fields of economy and development," Yang Jiechi added.

Shape of things to come

However, Yang also urged both the North and the South to find "urgent solutions" to their outstanding differences, especially after the authorities in Port Sudan blocked a 600,000 barrel shipment of southern oil last Friday in the wake of a dispute over duty payments - perhaps a portent of things to come.

The shipment was released over the weekend after a compromise was found between Juba and Khartoum.

"Sudan and the south will lose the peace equation by not cooperating on common and disputed issues," Yang said.

After meeting President Omar al-Bashir and the Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Karti in the Sudanese capital Khartoum, Yang is scheduled to travel to Juba, the new capital of South Sudan, on Tuesday.

Yang will see a country whose infrastructure is either in shambles or non-existent after decades of conflict - but also a country whose oil reserves make it an equally deserving candidate for Beijing's support.

Author: Arun Chowdhury (dpa, AFP)
Editor: Anne Thomas