The Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), Darfur's largest opposition group, has said it was ready to sign a temporary ceasefire with Sudan's government.

The announcement on Saturday said a "framework agreement" on the terms of future peace talks could be imminent.

The JEM said the deal would be a step forward but would not mark the end of its struggle with Khartoum.

"This is not the end of anything. This is just the start," Ahmed Hussein Adam, a JEM spokesman, told Reuters from N'Djamena, the capital of Chad, where he also said the JEM leadership had held discussions with a Sudanese government delegation for the last three days.

"We are ready to sign a temporary ceasefire when the terms of the framework agreement are agreed," he said.