KAMPALA, Uganda -(Dow Jones)- Congo has halted construction of a police post in the disputed West Nile border region with Uganda in the oil-rich Albertine rift, Ugandan officials said Monday.
According to Betty Adima, the resident district commissioner in Nebbi district, in West Nile, construction was halted over the weekend and the Congolese have since withdrawn troops, who have been guarding the site over the past two weeks.
"It's a positive development which we expect to help the ongoing diplomatic efforts to solve the dispute," she said.
Last week, the Ugandan government sent a protest note to Congo over the issue and the Ugandan military accused Congo of deploying in a demilitarized zone.
Yav Juvenile, the head of mission at the Congolese embassy in Uganda, said the Congolese foreign affairs minister is expected in Kampala anytime to hold talks with his Ugandan counterparts over the issue.
"We have maintained that this is a small issue, we are going to resolve it," he told Dow Jones Newswires Monday.
Ugandan officials have accused Congo of foot-dragging over attempts to forge numerous agreements, including remarking the two countries' common border.
Extensive oil exploration activities have been underway on the Ugandan side of the rift since 2006 and Uganda is in the process of commencing oil production. However, on the Congolese side, similar efforts have been delayed by insecurity and lawlessness as well as the government's 2007 decision to review all mining pacts.
-By Nicholas Bariyo, contributing to Dow Jones Newswires; +256 75 262 4615; bariyonic@yahoo.co.uk
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
06-15-090345ET
Copyright (c) 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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