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DAR ES SALAAM, April 9 (AFP) - Tanzania denied Friday reports that another civil war could break out in Rwanda because of a deadlock in peace talks under its mediation at Arusha in northern Tanzania.
Describing the reports as "baseless" and "dangerous", senior Tanzanian foreign ministry official Ami Mpungwe stressed that the talks "are continuing smoothly and each day we cover new ground of agreement".
Saying that Tanzania had checked with all its sources in Rwanda and found no tangible evidence of a possible war outbreak, Mpungwe said: "As far as we are concerned, the rumours are baseless and dangerous to the negotiations going on for a settlement of the Rwandan crisis".
Mpungwe, foreign ministry's director for Africa and the Middle East, was reacting to reports that France has written the the United Nations requesting the world body to take emergency action and immediately deploy military observers on the Rwandan-Ugandan border to prevent a fresh civil war outbreak.
But Mpungwe told AFP on telephone from Arusha Friday that the negotiators had already covered a lot of ground on the integration of Rwandan government forces and those of the rebel Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF).
"We are now dealing with outstanding issues on military integration. In fact, we are this afternoon due to hold a plenary session to see which areas the two sides have reached consensus", Mpungwe told AFP.
France's assertion that resumption of war was imminent was also dismissed by RPF chairman Alexis Kanyarengwe, who is currently in the Tanzanian capital for consultations with senior Tanzanian government officials.
hb/lto/f AFP AFP SEQN-0191
