Bashir, Kiir consider joint force to protect oil

CAIRO - South Sudan has requested talks with Sudan on deploying a joint force to secure oil fields in the south, Sudan's Foreign Minister Ali Karti told reporters on Monday.

Karti spoke at the airport in Khartoum after visiting Juba where Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir met Salva Kiir, president of South Sudan, in a diplomatic effort to halt fighting in South Sudan.

Sudan fears the three-week-old conflict in its southern neighbour could disrupt oil flows and damage its own struggling economy.

Reuters