Juba: The UN Security Council on Saturday urged South Sudan to drop its opposition to the deployment of a regional protection force to beef up a large UN peacekeeping mission in the war-scarred country.
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The Transitional Government of National Unity of South Sudan expressed its determination to implement the Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan, in particular the reform agenda, now that the Transitional National Legislative Assembly is in place.
Lomoro, who spoke to reporters after the meeting in Juba, read out other commitments made by south Sudan’s transitional government during the talks which President Salva Kiir and diplomats from the United Nations participated in.
Political parties and the main religious authorities in the country have however supported the Security Council decision. Ateny described it as a diplomatic victory for the government.
Dr Mahiga who also chairs the EA Council of Ministers said South Sudan has officially become member of the regional bloc, noting that the ministerial sessions preceding the Dar summit will have representatives from Juba.
The government had previously opposed the move saying it amounted to a violation of its sovereignty.
The Council wants the government to cooperate on the deployment of 4,000 more foreign troops or possibly face an arms embargo.
Kiir also said his rival, Machar, who fled the country after the July fighting and is now in neighboring Sudan, can’t return to the country until the next election cycle, the United Nations official and diplomat said.
At the sites, she said, the delegation met many people who could recount bullets flying over their head in the crossfire of the crises that occurred about two months ago.
China and Russian Federation abstained from a Security Council vote that was held on the 12th of August on the resolution that authorised deploying a protection force consisting of 4,000 troops.
The presidential palace was the scene of clashes on July 8 between President Kiir’s guards and troops loyal to his former deputy Dr Riek Machar, shattering a fragile truce that has been breached several times. “They agreed that the humanitarian and security needs of the people were paramount”, said the communique.
“Our aim is to ensure that refugees access to quality services according to worldwide standards, but our long-term strategy is to provide them with the tools and means that enable them to become more self-reliant and less dependent on humanitarian assistance”, Okoth-Obbo said.
The upsurge threatened a fragile peace accord signed previous year to end a devastating 18-month civil war which left tens of thousands dead.
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Aside from the tens of thousands of people killed, the United Nations has reported shocking levels of brutality including gang-rapes and the wholesale burning of villages.
