VATICAN CITY, June 1 (Reuters) - Pope Benedict urged Sudan on Friday to work for an end to the conflict in Darfur, saying it was not too late for the country to find a solution through dialogue and cooperation.

"In this murderous conflict which hits the civil populations first and foremost, everyone knows that no viable solution for a peace based on justice can be brought about through force of arms," Benedict told Sudan's ambassador to the Holy See.

"It is never too late to have the courage to make the necessary choices, which are sometimes difficult, to end a crisis," the Pope said, according to a text in French released by the Vatican.

The United States tightened sanctions against Sudan on Tuesday in hopes of putting additional pressure on the government of Sudanese President Omar Hassan al-Bashir to end the bloodshed in Darfur where four years of conflict have killed at least 200,000 people.

In November, Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir agreed to a three-phase U.N. plan to strengthen the African troops but he has delayed formal acceptance of the first two phases for months and has complained that the proposed 23,000-strong U.N.-African Union so-called "hybrid" force is too large.

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