Sudan drone aircraft, Khartoum says it is militarily 'self-sufficient'; UN calls for progress in Darfur conflict...

5 September :: Sudan gov't announces it has successfully produced military-use drone aircraft and is seeking ballistic missile capabilities; the Khartoum-based gov't of Pres. al-Bashir has said Sudan can now manufacture enough conventional weapons to be "self-sufficient" in defense-related production; observers say the announcement is disconcerting primarily because it is not clear against what perceived threat Sudan is arming itself; the top UN official in Sudan has called for progress on a negotiated political settlement to the conflict in Darfur, where some worry that a heavily armed Khartoum regime might use its military to support the ongoing slaughter with impunity...