BEIJING, Oct 12, 2007 (AFP) - China said Friday that it would support further international efforts to promote dialogue between Myanmar's ruling junta and its opposition, but insisted it was fundamentally an internal matter.

The comments were Beijing's first reaction to the release on Thursday of a statement by the 15 members of the UN Security Council including China, which 'strongly deplored' the junta's violent suppression of pro-democracy protests.

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 11, 2007 (AFP) - The UN Security Council on Thursday adopted by consensus a non-binding statement deploring the military crackdown in Myanmar and calling for the release of political prisoners, its president said.

Ghana's UN Ambassador Leslie Christian, who chairs the council this month, read out the long-awaited text, which marks the body's formal statement on the sensitive issue of Myanmar, after drawn-out, closed-door consultations.

UNITED NATIONS, Oct 11, 2007 (AFP) - UN Security Council ambassadors have reached consensus on a non-binding statement deploring the military crackdown in Myanmar, with China lifting its objections, a Western diplomatic source told AFP Thursday.

The agreement, reached in closed-door consultations, was to be announced shortly by the president of the 15-member council, Ghana's UN Ambassador Leslie Christian.

LONDON, Oct 4, 2007 (AFP) - Former Pakistani premier Benazir Bhutto said Thursday that there was no final power-sharing accord yet with President Pervez Musharraf, but voiced hope that one could be struck.

'We are optimistic today but I cannot say everything is finalised,' she told reporters after a two-day meeting of her Pakistan People's Party (PPP) in London to discuss a deal with Musharraf ahead of weekend elections.

N'DJAMENA, Oct 1, 2007 (AFP) - A minor Chadian rebel group signed a peace deal with the government Monday promising a ceasefire and the integration of its forces into the national army.

In the agreement, mediated by Libya and signed in the Chad capital N'Djamena, the Revolutionary Democratic Council of Chad (CDRT) said it would 'respect the constitution' of Chad and a ceasefire.

ASMARA, Sept 26, 2007 (AFP) - Eritrea on Wednesday reacted coolly to a threat by its arch-foe Ethiopia to abandon a peace agreement that ended their 1998-2000 war and whose implementation has stalled.

Eritrean Information Minister Ali Abdu insisted Ethiopia must implement the peace accord by accepting a 2002 ruling that awarded the flashpoint border town of Badme to Asmara.

'The Eritrea Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC) is entitled and mandated to demarcate the border, but the Ethiopian regime is refusing to abide by the rule of law,' Ali told AFP.

ADDIS ABABA, Sept 25, 2007 (AFP) - Ethiopia threatened Tuesday to terminate a fragile peace accord that halted its 1998-2000 border war with Eritrea, charging its tiny neighbour with breaching the pact and supporting 'terrorism.'

In a letter to Asmara, Ethiopia's Foreign Affairs Minister Seyoum Mesfin said it would mull 'legal and peaceful options, including terminating the agreements or suspending their operation in whole or in part.'

Eritrea was not immediately reachable for comment.