President Bush pledges support for conflicts in West Africa

Dakar, July 8, GNA - US President George W. Bush on Tuesday pledged the US government's support to bring peace to conflict areas in West Africa.

The support would include logistics; financial; technical and human resources.

President Bush made the pledge at a day's meeting with eight West African Heads of State in Dakar, Senegal.

The meeting was part of efforts by the US government to help establish peace and security across the continent and make the advantages of health and literacy widely available and also help African countries to develop vibrant, free economies through aid and trade. It would in addition, help promote other US strategic interests in Africa troubled by destitution, HIV/AIDS and regional conflicts. The Heads of State of Ghana, Senegal, Benin, The Gambia, Sierra Leone, Mali, Niger and Cape Verde attended the meeting.

Mr Kwabena Agyei Agyepong, Press Secretary to President John Agyekum Kufuor, briefing newsmen after the meeting held behind closed doors said, President Bush expressed the desire of the US government to combat international terrorism that had been the enemy of freedom to mankind.

On the Liberian conflicts, President Bush said there was the need to maintain ceasefire for peaceful transfer of power and whatever happened, the UN would be involved in the peace process. Mr Agyepong said President Bush commended the ECOWAS Chairman, President Kufuor in his efforts towards solving the conflicts in Cote d'Ivoire and Liberia.

"US would do whatever is necessary t assist ECOWAS to maintain ceasefire and bring an end to the human sufferings in Liberia", he said. He said President Bush gave the assurance that the US would endeavour to create an effective military response mechanism to be deployed quickly in the West African Sub-Region.

He said the US government had offered an additional five million dollars to the Millennium Challenge Account for Africa to assist countries that showed transparency, good governance and adhered to democratic rule, adding, "we now want to move from the talking stage to the delivery stage".

Mr Agyepong, who is also the Presidential Spokesman, said President Kufuor in his contribution, said the centrepiece of world politics was the dividends of democracy, which should be seen in the many sufferings inflicted on the African.

President Kufuor said there should be more discussions on conflicts resolution, education on better terms of trade, modernisation of agriculture as the means to reduce conflicts on the Continent. He said international terrorism could be the breeding grounds for most of the conflicts and called for a review in the manufacturing and proliferation of small arms in the West African Sub-Region. President Kufuor and President Bush later held discussions. President Bush had since left Dakar for Abuja, Nigeria on the second leg of his five-day visit to African countries.

Other countries he would visit are South Africa, Botswana and Uganda.