The State Department's second ranking official met Thursday with Sudan's top diplomat and urged him to take steps to halt the violence in Darfur and to permit the unfettered deployment of African Union troops in the region. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick met with Sudanese Foreign Minister Mustafa Osman Ismail at the State Department. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice plans to meet with Ismail on Friday, AP reported. Zoellick told Ismail he plans to attend the July 9 inauguration of the country's National Unity government. The new government is called for in the Jan. 9 peace agreement between Khartoum and the main southern Sudanese rebel group. Zoellick also discussed with Ismail the importance of protecting people living at camps for displaced persons in the vicinity of Khartoum, deputy State Department spokesman Adam Ereli said.
