Zimbabwe Talks Imminent, Lawyer Says

Talks between Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe's party and the opposition will begin this week, a lawyer for the opposition's top negotiator said Wednesday.

The opposition Movement for Democratic Change and Mugabe's ZANU-PF had, at least in public, been unable to agree to start talks about Zimbabwe's political crisis since Mugabe went ahead with - and declared himself winner of - a widely condemned June 27 presidential runoff.

Lawyer Lewis Uriri disclosed that talks were planned for this week during a court hearing Wednesday, when he asked for the return of the opposition's No. 2 party official's passport and explained that Tendai Biti needed it to go to neighboring South Africa for the talks. Uriri said Biti had wanted to leave Tuesday because the talks were to have begun Wednesday.

A judge ordered the passport returned. Biti had had to surrender it after being charged with treason.

Attempts to reach opposition or government spokesmen for further comment were not immediately successful. A spokesman for South African President Thabo Mbeki, who had been mediating on-again, off-again talks between the two sides, also was not immediately available.

As late as Wednesday morning, the opposition issued a statement saying "there are currently no negotiations between itself and ZANU PF," and Biti had told The Associated Press talks about talks weren't even underway. But state media in Zimbabwe had reported earlier in the week talks were imminent, and government spokesman Bright Matonga had told the AP earlier Wednesday that "things are moving at a faster pace than you think."

Talks at the U.N. about slapping Mugabe and some of his top political and security officials with sanctions may be spurring developments. The sanctions are aimed at punishing Mugabe for allegedly rigging recent presidential runoff, killing political dissenters and bringing Zimbabweans, who once grew food for the region, to the point of struggling to feed themselves.

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev said Wednesday that a strong statement by the Group of Eight nations on Zimbabwe will not necessarily lead to sanctions over Robert Mugabe's widely criticized re-election.

Medvedev's statement indicated Russia could veto or abstain in a U.N. Security Council vote expected this week on a U.S. draft resolution calling for sanctions over state-supported election violence in Zimbabwe. Violence and intimidation there prompted the opposition candidate to pull out of the race with Mugabe.

Zimbabwe's Foreign Minister Simbarashe Mumbengegwi met Tuesday in Ouagadougou, the capital of Burkina Faso, with the West African nation's President Blaise Compaore. Burkina Faso is currently a member of the U.N. Security Council.

In Burkina Faso, Mumbengegwi reiterated statements from Mugabe that he was ready to form a unity government with members of opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai's party. Zimbabwe may see at least talking about talks as a way to ward off sanctions, but Mumbengegwi made clear Mugabe envisioned a leading role for himself, something the opposition and Mugabe's critics in the West have rejected.

A vote on the U.S. draft resolution is expected later this week. In a telephone interview from Zimbabwe, government spokesman Matonga accused the United States of wanting "to arm twist the United Nations into an illegal act."

Foreign Secretary David Miliband of Britain, a strong supporter of the U.S. sanctions proposal, says the measure could influence those closest to Mugabe to pressure him to yield at the negotiating table. Miliband discussed the sanctions proposal this week during a visit to South Africa.

Among those targeted along with Mugabe in the proposed sanctions resolution are Emmerson Mnangagwa, a feared former security chief who allegedly planned election rigging, deployed soldiers involved in attacks on the opposition and provided arms and cars to Mugabe militants responsible for violence.

Another is Constantine Chiwenga, Mugabe's armed forces chief, who said before the elections that his soldiers would not serve anyone but Mugabe. Human Rights Watch's Kasambala called that a clear threat.