On the afternoon of September 18, 2007, Ambassador Liu Guijin, the Chinese Government's Special Representative on the Darfur Issue held a briefing to Chinese and foreign journalists and information officers of foreign embassies to China at the invitation of the International Press Center (IPC). Jiang Yu, Deputy Director-General of the Information Department hosted the briefing.

Liu said that I paid an official visit to the United States and the United Nations from September 4 to 11 and exchanged views with people from different circles on Sudan's Darfur issue. During my visit to the United States, I met respectively with U.S. Deputy Secretary of State John Negroponte and U.S. President's Special Envoy for Sudan Andrew Natsios. I also met with many friends from the U.S. Congress, including Steny Hoyer, the Majority Leader of the US House of Representatives, Tom Lantos, Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Donald Payne, Chairman of the Subcommittee on Africa and Global Health of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Senate Democratic Whip Dick Durbin, Senator Robert Menendez, the representatives from Save Darfur Coalition and Steven Spielberg, a renowned movie director. During my visit to the UN, I met respectively with Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for the UN Department of Political Affairs, Edmond Mulet, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, the AU observer to the UN, and Portugal's ambassador to the United Nations, whose country holds the EU's rotating presidency, and had working lunch with the ambassadors of the three African members on the Security Council: South Africa, Ghana and the Republic of Congo. During my visit, I held a briefing in the Chinese Embassy in the US, attended the international media briefing in the UN Secretariat, and accepted the joint interview by Chinese and foreign journalists.

Liu said that I expounded the policy propositions and positions of the Chinese government on the Darfur issue to the US and UN and introduced the efforts made by China to promote the proper settlement of the Darfur issue in terms of implementing the peacekeeping operations, advancing the political process, improving the humanitarian situation and reconstructing the Darfur region. The UN and US spoke positively of the constructive role played by China in resolving the Darfur issue and commented that the commitments of the Chinese government to dispatch multifunctional engineering unit to Darfur is a strong support to the hybrid peacekeeping operations. It is their hope that the multifunctional engineering unit of China could be deployed at an early date and that China could play a bigger role in resolving the Darfur issue and continue to work together with the international community for an early resolution of the issue.

Following the background briefing, Liu answered the questions raised by the journalists.

With regard to the situation in Darfur, Liu said that the Darfur issue is moving toward a positive direction. In the next phase, the international community should maintain the existing momentum and continue to give full play to the role of UN, the African Union (AU), and the Sudanese government as main channels. Dialogues and consultations on an equal footing should be maintained so as to enhance mutual trust and ensure the concrete execution of the hybrid peacekeeping operations in Darfur. The international community, in the meantime, should push the political process in the Darfur region forward, provide the region with more humanitarian and development assistance, and help the Sudanese government improve the humanitarian and security situation in Darfur in a bid to achieve peace and development in the region at an early date.

Speaking of the role played by China in resolving the Darfur issue, Liu stated that China will keep our commitments and start to dispatch multifunctional engineering unit to Darfur staring from early October, as required by the United Nations, so as to do our part in ensuring the complete and smooth deployment of hybrid peacekeeping operations. China is considering the participation in the third-phase of Annan Plan and would like to send military liaison officers. The Chinese government is very concerned of the humanitarian and security situation in Darfur and has offered multiple packages of assistance to Darfur and the AU Mission in Darfur. In the future, China will continue to offer assistance in our power and would like to participate in the reconstruction process of Darfur in a bid to help the local people improve the living standards and help the region achieve stability and development.

With respect to China's assistance to the Darfur region, Liu noted that the Chinese government attaches great importance to the humanitarian situation in the Darfur region and has delivered to Darfur all the 88-million-yuan humanitarian assistance materials that China pledged to offer. The Chinese enterprises dug 46 wells in Darfur. A Chinese company is constructing a large-scale water supply project in South Darfur State, which includes wells, water purification, and 85-kilometer water pipeline. When the project is completed, the water shortage in the region will be alleviated. In addition, the Chinese agencies in Sudan supported the educational undertaking in Darfur by donating long-distance educational system, PCs and desks to the schools in the region. China also plans to build a hospital in North Darfur State. China, according to the actual needs of the Darfur region, will continue to offer humanitarian and development assistance in our best power In the future so as to make greater contributions to the reconstruction and development of the region.