Hilu meets Hamdok ahead of the launch of peace talks in Juba
May 25, 2021 (JUBA) – The Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok on Tuesday met in Juba with the SPLM-N led by Abdel Aziz al-Hilu 24 hours ahead of the opening session of the peace talks to end the conflict in South Kordofan and Blue Nile states.
Hamdok who is also the head of the regional body IGAD that mediated the revitalized peace agreement arrived in Juba in the morning as he had to participate in the launch of the workshop on the Permanent Constitution-Making Process in South Sudan.
The cabinet said that al-Hilu paid a courtesy visit to Handok in his hotel in Juba.
“During the meeting, the two sides stressed the importance of the current round of peace negotiations that will start on Wednesday, and the need to engage in the talks with a strong determination to real will to achieve peace,” said the cabinet in a statement on Tuesday.
The opening session would be attended by President Salva Kiir, head of the Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, Hamdok, US Special Envoy for Sudan Donald Booth and the Head of the United Nations Integrated Transition Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS) Volker Perthes.
The Rapporteur of the Mediation Team Dhieu Matok said the round will last for two weeks.
Matok further said the government negotiating team led by Chems al-Din Kabbashi arrived in Juba in the afternoon.
For his part, the Sudanese cabinet affairs minister reiterated his government determination to achieve peace and silence guns in line with “the promise of the glorious December Revolution.”
He said a new structure of the government negotiating team will be announced ahead of the talks without further details.
Last March, al-Burhan and al-Hilu signed a declaration of principles proving to separate between the state and religion in response to the SPLM-N demand to discuss to include the matter in the peace talks.
(ST)