CHAD: Chad yesterday softened threats to stop sheltering Sudanese refugees and halt oil production following rebel attacks as the United States offered to broker a solution to a dispute with the World Bank.
President Idriss Deby pushed back until the end of April a deadline - originally set for midday today - for shutting off oil output by the landlocked central African state in a disagreement with the World Bank over frozen oil royalties.
Chad said the deadline delay was a response to a US government offer to mediate in the dispute, which involves a US-led consortium operating a $3.7 billion oil pipeline in Chad.
But US officials shied away from talking about mediation, saying Washington would act as an "honest broker" to try to foster better understanding between Chad and the World Bank.
"We are not playing a mediating role. We will encourage and cajole, but we will not mediate," said State Department spokesman Sean McCormack, who said a senior US diplomat for Africa, Donald Yamamoto, would fly to Chad soon for talks.
One diplomat in N'Djamena, who asked not to be named, said Washington had requested Chad to delay halting its oil output.
Mr Deby, facing attacks against his rule by rebels he says are backed by neighbour Sudan, assured the United Nations he would not forcibly expel more than 200,000 refugees in Chad who have fled violence in the western Sudanese region of Darfur.
This softened a threat he made on Friday when he cut diplomatic ties with Sudan and closed the border a day after rebels raided Chadian capital N'Djamena in fighting that killed and wounded several hundred people.
Mr Deby, weakened by coup plots and army desertions, is resisting a military offensive by insurgents seeking to end his almost 16-year rule ahead of a May 3rd presidential election in which he is standing for a third term.
Khartoum denies backing the anti-Deby rebels. But the president warned the world on Friday that Chad would no longer shelter Darfur refugees unless a security solution was found by the end of June for the conflict-torn Sudanese Darfur region. This has increased pressure on the UN to solve the three-year conflict in Darfur, which has killed tens of thousands and displaced about two million people.
Chad had threatened to stop its 160,000-170,000 barrels a day oil output at midday unless the World Bank released the frozen oil royalties or it was paid at least $100 million by the US-led oil consortium