Sudan is open to dialogue with Western nations, President Omar Hassan al-Bashir said Tuesday, in an unusually conciliatory message from a leader who is wanted on genocide charges and whose country has suffered from years of economic sanctions.

Speaking at the start of a new presidential term that extends his quarter century in power, Bashir, 71, also appealed for national unity as he grapples with rebellions and dwindling oil revenues following South Sudan's 2011 secession.

Bashir won 94 percent of the vote in a national election in April, the first since Sudan saw its south secede in 2011, but it was boycotted by most of the opposition.

Opposition figures have said the continued rule of Bashir has exacerbated Sudan's isolation from global financial and political institutions.

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