On December 30, 2004, Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing sent a letter to the Chairman of the African Union Commission Alpha Oumar Konare, informing him of the decision by the Chinese government to provide the African Union with 400 thousand US dollars in cash to aid its operations in Sudan's Darfur region. Li said in the letter that the Chinese government appreciates the African Union's leading role in the mediation of the Darfur issue and will continue to support African Union's mediation efforts. He hoped to see an appropriate solution to the Darfur issue within the framework of the African Union at an early date.