New York  - The UN Security Council on Tuesday welcomed an agreement between the Sudanese government and a rebel group to settle the conflict in Sudan's Darfur region.

The council debated the signing in Doha of an agreement of "good intentions" between Khartoum and the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the main opposition group in Darfur fighting Arab militias backed by the Sudanese government.

Council president, Japanese Ambassador Yukio Takasu, told reporters that the agreement was a "step in the right direction" to end the conflict, in which more than 300,000 people in Darfur have died and 2.5 million have become refugees since 2005.

Takasu said, however, that the 15-nation council called for progress in the peace talks and would not support the discussions taking place at the same time that the parties engaged in fighting.

Sudan's UN Ambassador Abdalmahmoud Mohamad said the Doha agreement was the beginning of a process that would end the fighting in three months.

Mohamad used the opportunity to denounce the International Criminal Court (ICC) for preparing to issue a verdict against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who it has accused of committing crimes against humanity, war crimes and genocide in Darfur.

Mohamad said the Sudanese are "fully behind" al-Bashir and are for peace in Darfur.

UN-mediated peace talks have so far failed to end the ethnic conflict in Darfur.

Takasu said council members were briefed by a UN official on the situation on the ground in Darfur, adding that "precautionary measures" were in place to protect UN personnel against Sudanese retaliation should the ICC indict al-Bashir.

Takasu said the issue of the ICC's decision had become "very sensitive" inside the council, which was divided on whether to support the verdict. Arab and African governments oppose the verdict on the grounds that it would derail the peace process, which needs al-Bashir's cooperation.

The US ambassador to the UN, Susan Rice, said the council must be aggressive in ensuring the end of the conflict. She said one member, apparently Libya, has opposed the council taking a common position on the issue of crimes in Darfur.

"It was a disappointment," she said. "The Security Council, because of the action of one member, was unable to speak with one voice in a balanced, clear condemnation, both of the offending action of the JEM and excessive aerial bombardement of the government of Sudan. This has left the council unable to express at this crucial moment the support needed for UNAMID."

UNAMID is the joint UN and African Union peacekeeping operation in Darfur, which has been under pressure from both Khartoum and the rebel groups. UNAMID has deployed more than 13,000 military and civilian personnel in the area. (dpa)