Luanda - Angola will abide by the principles of the United Nations (UN) and African Union (AU) in its relationship with the neighbouring countries, said Friday in Luanda the director for Africa and Middle East of the Angolan Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Mirex), Nelson Cosme.

Speaking at the opening of a meeting with African diplomatic body to Angola, Nelson Cosme said that these principles consist in respecting the sovereignty and territorial integrity, and non meddling in the domestic affairs of each State, the inviolability of borders inherited from the colonial era, the equal and peaceful coexistence among the states.

The ambassador added that Angola, after the period of war, is striving for recovery of its economy, reconstruction of the country and also speeding up of integrating process in the areas in which the country is inserted, the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS).
 

In the framework of this process, he explained that surveys carried out in the territory showed there were, in diamond producing zones, many citizens from other countries, not only Africans, who were engaged in exploring activity of natural resources.
 

He said that this action is reprehensible and damaging to the economies of the states, which resulted in harmful estimated at between USD 350 million to USD 400 million per year.

 
To Nelson Cosme, this does not justify any more, after the end of war, Angola not to control certain areas of its own territory.
 

For this reason, he argued, the Angolan authorities had to expel the citizens to their respective countries. This action did not target the citizens from a selected country only.

 
Most of this number, he said, was from Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and in the face of this legal action there was a certain misunderstanding by other neighbouring countries, namely the Republic of Congo and Democratic Republic of Congo, but the problem with former was quickly resolved.

 
Nelson Cosme said that this two actions cannot be established any parallelism, once the government acted in accordance with the law. Nevertheless, it has started contact with respective authorities for the solution of the situation.

At the end of the meeting, the vice dean of the diplomatic body in Angola, the ambassador of Gabon, Mandoukou Mziengui, said the problems reported in September related to expulsion of the citizens from both countries can be resolved at diplomatic level.
 

In his turn, the first secretary of DR Congo embassy in Angola, Didier Muzaza Wa Ngoie, said that despite these incidents the relations between the two countries are good, because they are friends.  

Didier Muzaza added that these situations are being addressed by both parties and everything is on good track.