U.N. envoy questions Khartoum's resolve

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UNITED NATIONS, Sept. 7 (UPI) -- The U.S. government is receiving "very disturbing reports" about a refugee crisis in states along the Sudanese-South Sudanese border, an ambassador said.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Susan Rice said much-needed humanitarian aid wasn't getting to South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.

"We continue to receive very disturbing reports that tens of thousands of people have become newly displaced due to renewed fighting in the two areas," she said following a U.N. Security Council briefing.

A driver employed by the World Food Program was killed in early August while working in South Kordofan.

Rice said Sudan has a responsibility to care for the people in the area and ensure their basic needs are met.

"Given the severity of the humanitarian crisis, a business-as-usual approach, which is what we seem to sense from Khartoum, is intolerable," she said.

She added there were a series of issues related to border and oil agreements that called into question Khartoum's seriousness about dealing with outstanding issues related to a various Security Council resolutions.

South Sudan gained independence last year under the terms of a 2005 peace agreement with Sudan that was brokered with Washington's help. Border issues, ethnic conflict and disputes over oil have threatened the peace deal, however.