AU chief asks Sudan to cooperate further

KHARTOUM (AFP) - The African Union on Monday urged Sudan to cooperate further with peace efforts in the country's Darfur region amid efforts to head off a possible arrest warrant against the head of state.

AU Commission chairman Jean Ping held what he described as "long" talks with President Omar al-Beshir, three weeks after the International Criminal Court (ICC) prosecutor sought Beshir's arrest warrant for alleged crimes in Darfur.

The AU strongly supports Sudan against the ICC and has asked the UN Security Council to delay any legal proceedings against Beshir, saying such a move could inflame the five-year conflict in Darfur.

An AU-United Nations peacekeeping mission (UNAMID) in the western Sudan region is struggling to deploy adequate troops and air power - still not pledged by the international community - and unblock a stalled peace process. Ping expressed hope that the Security Council would discuss "as soon as possible" a resolution that would delay ICC proceedings against Beshir.