Zimbabwe to reach power-sharing deal soon: MDC

By Serena Chaudhry

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - The secretary general of Zimbabwe's opposition Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) said on Sunday he believed a power-sharing deal with the country's ruling party will be reached soon.

Tendai Biti told a news conference in Johannesburg after a regional summit the MDC was committed to the negotiations and that failure was not an option.

"We trust that there will be a conclusion ... very soon. There are issues that are outstanding, but quite clearly one has no business in negotiating if you are not prepared to compromise," Biti said.

"It is critical that we conclude this dialogue as a matter of urgency."

Negotiations began last month after President Robert Mugabe was re-elected unopposed in June in a vote condemned around the world and boycotted by MDC leader Morgan Tsvangirai because of attacks on his supporters.

Earlier, a troika of southern African leaders at the summit called on Zimbabwe's parties to quickly reach a power-sharing agreement and said parliament may have to be convened as talks continue, South African President Thabo Mbeki said.

But the troika did not impose a deadline and it was not possible to say when a deal would be reached, said Mbeki, the new chairman of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) regional grouping.

All Zimbabwe's neighbors fear the consequences if its political stalemate and economic decline lead to total meltdown.

Millions of Zimbabweans have fled across borders to escape the world's highest inflation rate of over 2 million percent as well as high unemployment and shortages of basic goods.

(Additional reporting by Stella Mapenzauswa and Muchena Zigomo; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Catherine Evans)