ADDIS ABABA, June 6 (Xinhua) -- The African Union (AU) on Thursday expressed concern over the lack of progress among Sudanese stakeholders toward the establishment of a civilian-led transitional government.
The AU's Peace and Security Council, in a statement issued Thursday, reaffirmed the AU's "solidarity with the Sudan in their aspirations to constitutional order that will enable them to make progress in its efforts toward the democratic transformation of the country," an AU statement said.
The AU "strongly condemns and totally rejects any unilateral actions by whomsoever in the process of resolving the current crisis," the statement said, adding that the 55-member pan-African bloc "rejected the unilateral actions taken by the Transitional Military Council, notably the suspension of dialogue with other Sudanese stakeholders."
It urged the Transitional Military Council and all other concerned Sudanese stakeholders "abide by previously reached agreements on the setting up of a civilian-led Transitional Authority."
The AU also demanded that "all concerned in Sudan exert maximum restraint and refrain from any move that could ignite the already highly volatile situation in Sudan and to give primacy to the supreme interest of the people of Sudan."
The council called for "the immediate resumption of negotiations, without preconditions, between all Sudanese stakeholders towards the establishment of a civilian-led Transitional Authority, in full compliance with the decisions of this Council."
The AU also urged external actors to refrain from any form of interference in the process of resolving the current crisis in Sudan, emphasizing "the primacy of African-led initiatives in the search for a lasting solution to the crisis in Sudan."
"The fact that the Sudanese stakeholders are the sole authors of their destiny at this critical juncture in the history of their Country," the statement said.
