Egypt and South Africa Tuesday expressed their support for a 12-month delay of indictment on Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir for war crimes at the International Criminal Court (ICC), the South African Press Association reported.
"We are both making efforts to find a solution and we are trying hard," said visiting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak at a joint press conference after holding talks with his South African counterpart Thabo Mbeki.
"The case could perhaps be postponed for about 12 months during which something could happen to decrease the tension," he was quoted as saying during his first official visit to South Africa.
Mbeki said the indictment "does not help" efforts to move forward the peace process between north and south Sudan, nor in the Darfur region.
The UN Security Council on Monday stood divided over a proposal to suspend the ICC's indictment of Bashir.
The 15-member body held closed-door consultations Monday on a Britain-sponsored draft resolution seeking to extend the mandate of the UN-African Union peacekeeping operation in Darfur (UNAMID),which expires Thursday.
The council's president for the month, Vietnam's UN ambassador Le Luong Minh, told reporters that council members had agreed on "many elements of the draft", including the necessity for a mandate extension and measures to ensure the mission's effective operation.
South Africa and Libya tried to insert into the draft a paragraph calling for suspension of the ICC indictment, a move that was opposed by some Western nations, including the United States and France, diplomats said.
Some members sought to include such a paragraph "in order to avoid any negative impact on the operations of UNAMID and on the political process in Darfur and in the Sudan," Le said.
He said Vietnam shared concerns that such an indictment might have a negative impact on the resolution of the Darfur issue.
"The council will continue consultations on this draft resolution, with the hope that agreement can be achieved in time for a decision on extension of UNAMID's mandate," he added.
The chief prosecutor of the Hague-based ICC Luis Moreno-Ocampo formally requested an arrest warrant on July 14 against Bashir for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity in the western Sudanese region of Darfur.
Speaking to reporters, U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad said it would be "premature" for the Security Council to suspend the ICC indictment.
"To protect one person, by suspending the application of what Mr. Ocampo has proposed at this point is premature," Khalilzad said.
Last week, Russia's UN ambassador Vitaly Churkin said the council may consider suspending the ICC indictment.
Churkin said Article 16 of the ICC statute "does give the Security Council of the United Nations certain political responsibilities. It is a duty of the Security Council."
Under Article 16 of the ICC statute, the Security Council can pass a resolution to defer an ICC investigation or prosecution fora period of 12 months. Such a resolution can also be renewed.
Source:Xinhua
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