Angolan President Willing to Seek Peace With UNITA

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Tuesday, February 26, 2002

Angolan President Willing to Seek Peace With UNITA

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Angolan President Jose Eduardo dos Santos said in Lisbon on Monday that he will seek ways to negotiatea cease-fire with the rebel National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (UNITA), following the death of its leader Jonas Savimbi.

After meeting with his Portuguese counterpart Jorge Sampaio, Dos Santos said the government is taking steps to normalize the political situation in Angola by searching for a path that leads to a cease-fire.

If a cease-fire could be reached this year and UNITA agrees to put arms beyond use, general elections could be held in this war-torn African nation within a year or two, he added.

The president, who arrived in Portugal on Sunday, was convincedthat after Savimbi's death, it will be easier to achieve peace in Angola.

The 67-year-old Savimbi led UNITA rebels in a prolonged civil war that has raged almost non-stop since Angola's independence in 1975. He was killed Friday in clashes with government troops.

Savimbi's death has raised hopes that an end to the conflict could be in sight. More than half a million people are believed tohave been killed and some four million were displaced during the conflict.

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