UN powers hold back from Sudan action as violence eases AFP United Nations, 16/05/12 - Sudan and South Sudan remain "poised, locked and loaded" on their tense border but the UN Security Council will not take immediate action to encourage the rivals back to talks, US ambassador Susan Rice said Wednesday. UN envoy to Sudan Haile Menkerios gave "a mixed assessment" on the deadline day set by the council for the two sides to return to talks, Rice told reporters after a closed meeting on the conflict. "On the positive side the level of violence seems to have dropped significantly, particularly over the last week to 10 days," said Rice who stressed that the rivals "remain poised, locked and loaded, one might say, in the various parts of the border." She said that South Sudan's withdrawal of police from the disputed territory of Abyei "has been verified and completed" in line with the demands made by the council in a resolution passed on May 2. "Council members were united in insisting that Sudan withdraw its forces immediately and unconditionally" following the South's move, Rice said. Menkerios, who briefed the council by videoconference from the region, and former South African president Thabo Mbeki are leading international efforts to get peace talks resumed. "It is frankly not a surprise that it will not happen necessarily on the day we decreed, but the aim is that it happens as soon as possible without any further delay," Rice said. "The aim of the resolution was not to punish - that wasn't the objective, although it provided for that potentially - the aim is for the parties to stop fighting and return to the table," the US envoy said. Rice added that the international community would put "maximum pressure" on the two sides to secure an end to fighting and new talks.
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