SHARM EL-SHEIKH, EGYPT - AFRICA'S top conflict prevention body ended talks on Sunday without making any public comment on Zimbabwe's political crisis ahead of an African Union summit on Monday.

The meeting of the AU's 15-member Peace and Security Council (PSC) ended after three hours of talks amid growing calls for the summit to shun Zimbabwe President Robert Mugabe over his widely discredited election win.

Mr Mugabe, 84, was sworn in for another term shortly before the meeting in the Egyptian resort of Sharm el-Sheikh opened, having been declared election winner after opposition candidate Morgan Tsvangirai withdrew because of violence.

'There was an exchange of views on the matter of Zimbabwe,' said AU commission spokesman El-Ghassim Wane. 'It was simply a case of the council getting up to date on the latest developments in that country.'

'A discussion will certainly take place at the level of heads of state and if there is a decision to take it will be taken at the level of the Union's summit. No decision was taken by the PSC,' he said.

A participant at the PSC talks told AFP that 'on Zimbabwe, the meeting decided to appeal to all parties not to return to violence and to find an inclusive solution.'

Apparently seeking to temper potential African hostility, Mr Mugabe used his swearing-in to call for dialogue and heaped praise on the much criticised efforts of South African President Thabo Mbeki to mediate the crisis.

'It is my hope that sooner rather than later, we shall as diverse political parties hold consultations towards such serious dialogue as will minimise our difference and enhance the area of unity and cooperation,' Mr Mugabe said.

So far there has been no consensus among the AU's 53 member states, with the pan-African body issuing diplomatic statements and pushing for a power-sharing arrangement between Mr Mugabe and Mr Tsvangirai's Movement for Democratic Change.

The Southern African Development Community, which has been leading mediation efforts out of the crisis, 'are in consultation to put a text to the summit on how to end the Zimbabwe crisis, notably power-sharing possibilities,' said a source close to the AU's Commission.

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Earlier, Burkina Faso President Blaise Compaore warned that the Zimbabwe crisis could destabilise southern Africa.

'Today Africa must be much more interested in Zimbabwe... because this is a situation which could, beyond Zimbabwe, affect the whole southern African region,' he told journalists.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Meles Zenawi said the AU had an opportunity to help solve the crisis and 'consider the long-term interests of Zimbabwe and Africa.'

'Not one party can have a fully legitimate government in the eyes of the Zimbabwean people today because of the polarisation. So there is a need to bridge the gap,' he said.

Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga, among the veteran leader's most vocal critics, has called on the bloc to send troops into Zimbabwe, and labelled Mugabe 'a shame to Africa.'

South African cleric and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Desmond Tutu said 'a very good argument can be made for having an international force to restore peace' in Zimbabwe under UN auspices.

In London, British Foreign Office Minister Mark Malloch Brown said if Mr Mugabe resists change and violently oppresses human rights, 'then I hope the African neighbours will do whatever it takes to secure his departure.'

A group of African lawmakers who observed Friday's election run-off said the results should be scrapped and a new vote held.

US President George W. Bush on Saturday ordered additional sanctions to beef up existing measures that include a travel ban on Mr Mugabe's inner circle and a freeze on their bank accounts.

Human Rights Watch called on Sunday for African leaders to impose sanctions against Mr Mugabe and refuse to recognise his legitimacy, calling the election a 'sham.'