GOMA, DR Congo, 03 décembre 2008 (AFP) — Laurent Nkunda's rebels said Wednesday they were ready to meet the governor of Nord-Kivu province to discuss the conflict in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo.

"We are ready to welcome the governor of Nord-Kivu if it is for information contacts," Bertrand Bisimwa -- a spokesman for the National Congress for the Defence of the People (CNDP) -- told AFP.

Belgium said on Tuesday it saw no prospect for now of a European peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo, despite efforts by the former colonial power to rally backing for such a force.
U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon has led calls for Europe to provide a rapid reaction force to help overstretched U.N. peacekeepers halt violence in the North Kivu province where rebel attacks have displaced a quarter of a million people.