UNITED NATIONS, July 3 (Xinhua) -- The United States
formally introduced to the UN Security Council on Thursday a draft resolution
proposing sanctions against Zimbabwe.
Speaking to reporters after a closed council meeting,
U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad blamed Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe and
his top aids for ignoring international calls for a postponement of their
"flawed" presidential elections.
"There is a crisis of ... political legitimacy that
continues," Khalilzad said. "This crisis not only impacts the people of Zimbabwe
... but also the region and impacts the credibility of the Security Council."
The council adopted a presidential statement on June
23 that expressed "regrets" over the lack of conditions for a free and fair
election to take place in Zimbabwe on June 27.
Khalilzad said the draft proposes "targeted
sanctions" against those who are responsible for the political crisis with an
aim to push for their cooperation in efforts to resolve the crisis.
"We expect a vote on the resolution sometime next
week," he noted.
The U.S. draft asks the 15-member body to impose an
arms embargo, a travel ban and an assets freeze against Mugabe and 11 of his top
aids.
The text also "condemns the decision of the
government of Zimbabwe to go forward with the June 27 elections" and urges the
government to "begin without delay a substantive political dialogue between the
parties."
It also demands that the government accept and
cooperate with the mediation efforts taken by the African Union, the Southern
African Development Community and UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.
Khalilzad said that council experts will work on the
text Thursday afternoon and that the council will hear a briefing on the latest
developments in Zimbabwe next Tuesday.
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The 11th
African Union (AU) summit closed here Tuesday after African leaders discussed
the impact of soaring food prices, the situation in Zimbabwe, and how to achieve
the Millennium Development Goals in Africa. Full story
SHARM EL-SHEIKH, Egypt, July 1 (Xinhua) -- The
African Union (AU) on Tuesday adopted here a resolution supporting the creation
of a government of national unity for Zimbabwe through dialogue, a text of the
decision said.
Reached at the ongoing 11th AU summit at the Egyptian
Red Sea resort, the AU resolution decided to encourage Zimbabwean President
Robert Mugabe and opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai to honor their commitment
to initiate dialogue with a view to promoting peace, stability, democracy and
reconciliation. Full story
UNITED NATIONS, June 30 (Xinhua) -- The United States
has completed a first draft resolution proposing sanctions on Zimbabwe over
Friday's presidential run-off election, Britain's UN ambassador John Sawers said
on Monday.
"Our United States colleagues have drafted a first
draft of a sanctions resolution which is being discussed over the next couple of
days," Sawers told reporters on the sidelines of a Security Council meeting.
WASHINGTON, June 30 (Xinhua) -- The United States
will possibly announce new diplomatic and economic sanctions against Zimbabwean
President Robert Mugabe and his government in "a week or two," White House
spokeswoman Dana Perino said Monday.
"I don't think it'll take that long to develop, but
we just need to give them maybe a week or two to think about that," Perino said
of the forthcoming sanctions against Zimbabwe. "Let's see what they come up
with." Full story
Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe is
confered with the presidential ribbon by Chief Justice Godfrey Chidyausiku
during his inauguration at the State House in Harare, capital of Zimbabwe,
on June 29, 2008. (Xinhua Photo) Photo
Gallery>>>
HARARE, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Zimbabwe President Robert
Mugabe was sworn in for a new five-year term in office on Sunday, after being
declared winner of Friday's presidential run-off poll.
He overwhelmingly beat Movement for Democratic Change
(MDC) leader Morgan Tsvangirai by 2,150,265 votes to 233,000, or 85.5 percent to
9.3 percent in the election, overturning the latter's victory in the first round
of the poll in March 29, according to the results announced by the Zimbabwe
Electoral Commission (ZEC). Full story
