The United States is willing to make changes to its draft resolution on Sudan, US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage has said. But Washington insists on having "as strong a resolution as possible", he stressed during a visit on Monday to Oslo. "Generally, as we move through the UN Security Council process with a resolution, whether we put in the resolution or another country, there are modifications and I do expect some modifications," he told reporters. The US formally presented a draft resolution to the Security Council on Thursday, pressing the Sudanese government to rein in militias accused of being primarily responsible for the bloodshed in Darfur, where an estimated 50,000 people have died in 19 months of warfare. The resolution is the second proposed since July aimed at stopping the violence which has also forced about 1.4 million people to flee their homes. **Objection*** China led a number of nations that objected to the draft, which calls for a beefed-up African Union force in Darfur and threatens sanctions on Sudan's oil industry if Khartoum does not disarm and stop the militias. The US has said the killing amounts to "genocide" - a claim rejected by the Sudanese government - and included in the draft a call for an international commission of inquiry into the slaughter. Washington has solid support from Germany and Britain, and needs nine votes to pass the resolution if no permanent council member imposes its veto. But Russia and China, which both have veto rights, as well as Pakistan and Algeria have expressed unhappiness with the draft. "We want as strong a resolution as possible, obviously. But the resolution won't be as strong as the draft," Armitage said following his talks with Norwegian Foreign Minister Jan Petersen. The Security Council is expected to make a decision on the resolution this week. **Optimism*** Sudan's foreign minister said on Monday he was optimistic about striking a peace deal within three months to end atrocities in Darfur, and again rejected US charges of genocide in the region. Foreign Minister Mustafa Usman Ismail, on a visit to South Korea, said his government and rebel groups would "very soon" resume the African Union-brokered peace talks. "Hopefully, before the end of this year, we will sign a final peace agreement," he told a news conference in Seoul. "Hopefully, by next year the whole of Sudan will be in peace." In the Nigerian capital of Abuja on Sunday, rebel negotiators also said they remained hopeful about peace talks as AU special envoy General Abdu Salami Abu Bakar of Nigeria was helping bridge the gap. The minister said the US-led resolution would fail to win backing from the UN Security Council. "It will be very difficult for the United States to impose sanctions on Sudan because it is unrealistic, not balanced and not rational," he said. **PHOTO CAPTION*** US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage.