(Xinhua)
Updated: 2008-01-13 19:28

KHARTOUM -- Sudanese Foreign Minister Deng Alor and a visiting US official discussed bilateral relations and the ongoing efforts to end the five-year conflict in western Sudanese region of Darfur, Sudan's Al-Wahda daily reported on Sunday.

During a meeting with US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Linda Thomas Greenfield on Saturday, Alor affirmed Sudan's commitment to develop its relations with the United States.

He noted that the two countries should work for normalizing relations to realize common interests.

Spokesman of the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Ali Al-Sadiq said the meeting touched on topics such as boosting the political process in Darfur and accusations made by some circles against Sudan of obstructing the hybrid peacekeeping operation in Darfur.

For her part, the US official told reporters the meeting tackled bilateral relations, pointing out that there are issues under discussion, and dialogue would solve them.

Greenfield stressed that the recent incident of killing a US diplomat in Khartoum would not affect the diplomatic relations between Sudan and the United States.

She said the two countries were working together to apprehend the culprits, adding that there was "a good cooperation" with the Sudanese government.

She indicated that she would discuss with Sudanese officials procedures that would help to fortify protection of the American embassy staff in Khartoum.

The official SUNA news agency reported last week that Sudanese authorities were cooperating with FBI agents whom were sent to investigate the fatal shooting of the American diplomat in the Sudanese capital on January 1.

The US diplomat, John Granville, who worked for the US Agency for International Development, was shot dead on a main road in Khartoum when he was being driven home just before the sunrise.

Granville's killing was the first assassination of a US diplomat in Sudan since 1973.