Power-sharing deal close in Zimbabwe: report

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Zimbabwe's ruling party and the opposition are close to a power-sharing deal that would turn Robert Mugabe into a ceremonial president, a South African newspaper reported on Tuesday.

The report came as Zimbabwean state media reported ZANU-PF and the opposition Movement for Democratic Change had agreed to expand their negotiating teams in a move the ruling party called a "good omen".

The report in The Star newspaper cited unnamed sources close to the negotiations as saying the agreement would make MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai executive prime minister.

Zimbabwean government and MDC officials were not immediately available for comment.

"They are down to detail now," the newspaper quoted one source as saying. "Although how long that will take is still unclear. But a deal is not far off. Not at all."

Mugabe's ZANU-PF began power-sharing talks with the MDC two weeks ago in South Africa after Mugabe was re-elected in a widely condemned poll boycotted by the opposition.

The two sides are under heavy international pressure, including from within Africa, to resolve a crisis that has ruined the once prosperous economy and flooded neighboring states with millions of refugees.

The opposition says only Tsvangirai can lead a new government because he won a first-round presidential vote in March before pulling out of the June 27 run-off because of violence he says killed 122 of his supporters.

ZANU-PF has said it will not accept any deal that fails to recognize Mugabe's re-election.

FLEXIBLE DEADLINE

Zimbabwe's official Herald newspaper reported on Tuesday that ZANU-PF and the MDC had agreed to expand their negotiating teams after the parties adjourned last week before resuming talks in South Africa on Sunday.

They had originally set themselves a deadline of Monday to reach a deal, but both sides have said the timeline is flexible.

Commenting on the extension of the talks, Christopher Mutsvangwa of ZANU-PF's information and publicity committee told the Herald: "That shows progress. The extension is aimed at overcoming all the issues on the agenda. The omen is very good."

University of Zimbabwe political science lecturer John Makumbe had a cautious interpretation of the expansion of the negotiating teams.

"If a breakthrough is near, it might not necessarily be because more people are now involved. If anything, I think the more the people, the more difficult it might be to reach an agreement," he said.

"But nothing is obvious in politics. Remember, the original six negotiators have been at it for over a year now and have grown familiar, which could cloud their views on certain issues and impinge on their efficiency."

South African President Thabo Mbeki has been mediating between the rival Zimbabwean parties since last year.

The parties have also disagreed over how long a national unity government should remain in power.

The MDC wants new elections held as soon as possible while Mugabe, who has ruled since 1980, wants to carry on with his new five-year mandate.

(Reporting by Michael Georgy in Johannesburg and MacDonald Dzirutwe in Harare; editing by Robert Hart)