Zimbabwe Power-Sharing Talks Deadlocked Over Mugabe's Powers

HARARE, Zimbabwe - Zimbabwe's power-sharing talks remained deadlocked over who would hold executive authority, with opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai insisting that any deal that leaves President Robert Mugabe in control of the government is a deal he cannot sign.

The negotiations, mediated by South African President Thabo Mbeki, follow a discredited June election in which Tsvangirai won the first round but withdrew from the runoff amid a campaign of violence that killed scores of his supporters.

Under the framework on the table, Mugabe would remain president and Tsvangirai would become prime minister. The sticking point is who controls the cabinet, the army and the police.

Meanwhile, Zimbabwe's economic collapse grinds on. Inflation, which the government stopped reporting after it passed 11 million percent, is estimated by independent economists in the hundreds of millions of percent. The central bank knocked 10 zeros off the currency this month — the second such revaluation.

A cholera threat looms as the water and sanitation systems crumble, and aid agencies say more than 5 million people — nearly half the population — will need food aid by early next year.

Mugabe, 84 and in power since independence in 1980, says the West is plotting to recolonize the country. Tsvangirai's party says patience in the region is finally wearing thin.

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Associated Press writers contributed to this report.

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