AU chief urges Kenya resolution

The crisis in Kenya is expected to dominate an African Union summit starting in Addis Ababa.Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki is among more than 40 heads of state gathering in the Ethiopian capital for the three-day meeting. The AU chairman said it was "Today it is the responsibility of the African Union to solve this problem," said Alpha Konare. He was referring to the inter-tribal violence that has killed more than 800 Kenyans in the past month, and forced tens of thousands to flee their homes.Mr Konare also criticised the 53-member union for not doing enough to address issues in Africa and around the world. No 'blank cheque' While the billed theme of this year's summit is industrialization, Kenya is likely to be a focal topic. Jendayi Frazer, the top US envoy to Africa on Wednesday described the forced removal of people from Kenya's Rift Valley as ethnic cleansing. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon is expected to tell the organisation of the need for a peaceful compromise in a country whose stability is seen as key for the region. "The Kenyan crisis is a serious one and we cannot simply condone what the Kibaki regime is trying to feed us," one member of the AU commission told the AFP news agency."The government will not be given a blank cheque at this summit." Sudan and Somalia The AU's peacekeeping operations in Sudan and Somalia are also expected to be on the agenda. The AU and the United Nations have promised to create the world's largest peacekeeping force in Darfur to replace the troubled region's current undermanned and under-equipped AU force. Mr Ban is expected to arrive in Addis Ababa for talks with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir about the proposed 26,000 hybrid force. SOURCE OF THIS STORY