LONDON - United States President George W Bush has backed calls for a power-sharing agreement to end weeks of strife in Kenya following disputed presidential elections.

He said he was sending his secretary of state to Kenya to convey the message.
President Bush was speaking in Benin, at the start of his first presidential tour of Africa since 2003.

He said he would highlight African success stories during his six-day, five-nation visit, even though he remained committed to ending turmoil.

Speaking after talks with Benin’s President Thomas Boni Yayi, Mr Bush said Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice was going to Kenya to help efforts to resolve the impasse - led by former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan.

"The key is that the leaders hear from her first hand that the United States desires to see that there be no violence and that there be a power-sharing agreement that will help this nation resolve its difficulties,” Mr Bush told reporters.

Kenya’s rival political parties have agreed to set up an independent panel to review last year’s disputed elections. But a possible power-sharing agreement has not been reached.
The opposition has accused President Mwai Kibaki of rigging the poll.

The dispute has led to protests, in which at least 1,000 people have died and 600,000 have fled their homes.

Mr Bush said he had skipped conflict areas to highlight success stories during his Africa trip.  "When you herald success, it helps others realize what it possible,” said the US president, who yesterday headed to Tanzania.

BBC