Maravi

(TALKZIMBABWE, ZIMBABWE GUARDIAN, BLOOMBERG) Angola urges EU to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe

Angola urges EU to lift sanctions against Zimbabwe
Bloomberg/Zimbabwe Guardian
Wed, 23 Jul 2008 10:30:00 +0000

ANGOLA urged the European Union to lift all sanctions against Zimbabwean officials because they pose an obstacle to negotiations aimed at ending that nation's political crisis. “There is no reason to justify the maintenance of these sanctions,” Foreign Minister Joao Bernardo Miranda said in an interview today on state-run Angolan National Radio. “The EU should very soon lift all sanctions against the leaders of Zimbabwe.”

The E.U. announced yesterday it will add 37 people linked to President Robert Mugabe's ruling party to its list of 131 people who are targeted with sanctions. The measures, including asset freezes and travel bans, came a day after President Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai signed an agreement to begin crucial talks to end the crisis in the country.

Talks between Mugabe's ruling party and Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change should be supported by the international community, Miranda said.

“This dialogue is for real, therefore it is practical that the international community to help to establish a new political order in Zimbabwe,” Miranda said.

President Mugabe won the June 27 presidential runoff election which Tsvangirai withthdrew from, alleging a state-sponsored campaign of violence against his supporters.

Bloomberg/Zimbabwe Guardian

Labels: ANGOLA, EU, JOAO BERNARDO MIRANDA, SANCTIONS

posted by MrK @ 1:04 AM