South Sudanese, Sudanese army commanders meet over border security matters
June 11, 2015 (JUBA) – South Sudanese army (SPLA) commanders in Unity state said they have met with field commanders of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) from neighbouring Sudan over border security after Khartoum’s forces allegedly evacuated their border positions in fear of advancing South Sudanese army on rebels.
South Sudanese army spokesperson, Colonel Phillip Aguer, told Sudan Tribune on Thursday that an allied militia commander, who is also deputy commander of the government forces in its fourth division, Major General Mathews Puljang, met with SAF’s Major General Mohamed Ahmed at the border of Sudan and South Sudan on Wednesday.
The meeting, according to Aguer, was to assure the Sudanese army on the side of the border of commitment and full respect of the SPLA to the 2012 security arrangement under the cooperation agreements.
“The objective of the meeting was to assure the Sudanese army of the commitment of the general command of the SPLA to using mechanisms in the security arrangement as the basis to discussing how best the two sides should carry out steps to build up confidence and realize arms reduction, in particular, the mutual notification and control of large-scale movements of military units and major military exercises,” Aguer explained.
The military officer explained that peaceful utilization of the demilitarized zone, exchanges of security information, reductions in armaments and attack capabilities was one of the core provisions of the cooperation agreements which obliged the two sides to recognize and respect the system of each other as well as refrain from any acts of sabotage or insurrection against each other.
“The SPLA remains fully committed and determined to avoid armed aggression and hostilities, and to ensure the lessening of tension and the establishment of peace along the border areas with neighbouring countries, including Sudan,” he said.
He explained that it was the desire of the two countries to continue to work together to realize multi-faceted exchanges and cooperation to promote interests and prosperity common to the people.
The South Sudanese army military spokesperson underlined that cooperation between the two sides will contribute towards establishing and implementing and guaranteeing nonaggression.
He said the meeting was the initiative of the field commanders to assure the Sudanese army of their commitment to mutual respect and cooperation and that the latter was not the target of the operation in which the former carried out to gain control of places previously occupied by the armed opposition fighters, forcing Sudanese army to vacate some of the areas outside Heglig to avoid confrontation.
“Our forces in the person of Major General Mathews Puljang wrote a letter to Major General Mohamed Ahmed assuring them of our commitment to mutual respect and full cooperation within the framework of non-aggression agreement which we signed in 2012 with Sudan,” Aguer continued.
He said SPLA was committed to full cooperation in areas of information sharing and avoid hostility, including rejecting hosting hostile groups.
Sudanese government has been accusing Juba forces of hosting, training and arming their rebel groups. It threatened to deploy its troops at the borders and carry out air raids into South Sudan’s territory should the South Sudanese government continue to support Khartoum’s rebels.
South Sudanese rebels led by former vice president, Riek Machar, also alleged that Darfuri rebels participated in the recent clashes in Panakuach around the oilfields, fighting on the side of president Salva Kiir’s government.
Meanwhile, Lieutenant General Bapiny Monytuil, brother to Unity state’s governor, Joseph Monytuil and government allied militia commander whose forces fight alongside the government troops said the meeting was to build trust and instil sense of cooperation in sharing information between the forces about the activities of the hostile forces operating against the other in the territory under control of the other.
SAF FORCES FLED FROM BORDER BASES
Gordon Buay, former spokesperson of the former militia group also in a separate interview told Sudan Tribune that the joint meeting, asking SAF forces to return to their abandoned bases took place at 3pm at Sudanese held Karaba military outpost on Wednesday at the border near Heglig oilfields.
“Prior to the meeting, on Wednesday morning, Major General Mathews Puljang sent a letter to the SAF commanding officer in Heglig requesting him to return to their bases. The SAF returned to their bases at 11:45am. All their equipment and properties were protected by Mathews Puljang and none was taken by our constitutional forces,” Buay said in a statement to Sudan Tribune on Wednesday.
Buay said military officers asked SAF to ensure that opposition fighters do not use the Sudanese territory to attack South Sudanese army in Unity State.
Major General Mohamed Ahmed, according to Buay, agreed in principle that he would make sure that no “single rebel of Riek Machar” stayed at the border.
On his part, Major General Mathews Puljang also assured SAF that the SPLA would not allow any “negative force” to destabilize Sudan and South Sudan border.
(ST)