Peace negotiations between Ethiopia and Eritrea under the auspices of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) are making "great progress," a source close to the talks said.
"We have identified bases of agreement over five days, and the two delegations have made great progress," the source said Friday.
"On some points we reached agreement, but some difficult questions remain for which we are trying to find answers," he said, declining to elaborate for fear of "disturbing the continuation of the talks."
The talks were agreed at a July summit of OAU, which asked then OAU chairman Abdelaziz Bouteflika, the Algerian president, to continue in his role as mediator in the conflict.
Representatives from the European Union, the United Nations, the United States and the OAU are also following the talks.
The two countries signed a "cessation of hostilities" agreement in Algiers in June, a month after Ethiopia launched a major and seemingly successful offensive into Eritrea, its former province that won independence in 1993 after a 30-year war.
The deal included undertakings to work towards a permanent ceasefire and a full peace accord.
Tens of thousands of people, most of them soldiers from both sides, were killed in the war, which has displaced more than 1.2 million people -- ALGIERS (AFP)
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