Peace talks between Liberian President Charles Taylor and rebels fighting his regime will begin in Ghana two days later on June 4, diplomats said yesterday, citing "security reasons" for the delay.

The Ghanaian ambassador to Monrovia Kwame Amoah-Awua said the talks would be held in Akosombo, a town on the outskirts of the Ghanaian capital Accra.

The announcement was made at a press conference, which was also addressed by European and US diplomats, whose countries are members of the International Contact Group on Liberia.

Diplomats said the date and venue had been changed due to "security concerns" but did not elaborate. The meeting was originally due to be held in Accra on June 2.

"We hope the meeting will begin turning the catastrophic situation to a more positive sign," the Ghanaian envoy said, referring to the Liberian conflict, which threatens to destabilise West Africa.

The peace talks are being held under the aegis of the 15-nation Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), of which Ghana holds the rotating presidency, and the International Contact Group.

The latter was set up on September 17 on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session in New York is made up of the United Nations, the European Union, Ecowas, the African Union, the US, France, Senegal, Nigeria, Ghana and Morocco.

The Liberians United for Reconciliation and Democracy (Lurd) movement fighting Taylor since 1999 had initially said it was opposed to Accra as a venue due to security reasons, as there were many Liberians in the city.

They later said they would attend the talks there in keeping with international efforts to broker peace in Liberia.

Nigeria's ex-dictator General Abdulsalami Abubakar will mediate the talks in Ghana between the Liberian government and the two rebel groups: the Lurd and the Movement for Democracy in Liberia (Model), which recently emerged in the country's south.

Liberia emerged from a seven-year civil war that claimed some 250 000 lives, in 1997, the year Taylor, a former warlord, was elected, only to plunge into a new conflict in 1999, when Lurd rose up against the government. – Sapa-AFP.