ADDIS ABABA, Ethiopia — President Barack Obama urged Ethiopia's leaders Monday to curb crackdowns on press freedom and political openness as he began a visit that human-rights groups say legitimizes an oppressive government.
"When all voices are being heard, when people know they are being included in the political process, that makes a country more successful," Obama said during a news conference with Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn.
Obama's trip marks the first visit by a sitting U.S. president to Ethiopia, a fast-growing economy once defined by poverty and famine.
Later Monday, Obama convened a meeting with African leaders on the crisis in South Sudan, telling them he hoped the discussion would help to "bring about the kind of peace that the people of South Sudan so desperately need." The world's newest nation has been gripped by violence as warring factions in the government fight for power.
"The conditions on the ground are getting much, much worse," Obama said at the news conference. He said if a peace agreement isn't reached by an Aug. 17 deadline, the U.S. and its partners would have to "consider what other tools we have."
Options under consideration include deepening economic sanctions and an arms embargo.
Read Tuesday's Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for full details.