IGAD summit in Juba delayed to next week
November 14, 2015 (KHATOUM) – Sunday’s summit of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) leaders has been delayed to the next week.
But the SPLM-IO said its leader would not take part in this event. The co-signatory of peace agreement pointed to the need to complete arrangement for its advance team to arrive in Juba and to resolve some of political and security issues in the peace agreement before.
South Sudanese ambassador in Khartoum Mayan Dut Waal on Saturday told Sudan Tribune that the IGAD summit was delayed to Thursday, adding that all the IGAD leaders including President Omer al-Bashir will be in Juba on 19 November.
The reason behind the delay was not clear, what informed sources said the measure aims to give more time for the former president of Botswana, Festus Gontebanye Mogae to settle the outstanding issues between the two sides.
Mogae who is announced last month as head of the IGAD monitoring commission for the implementation of peace agreement met Saturday with President al-Bashir to discuss the ongoing preparation to start the implementation of the peace deal signed last August.
In press statement to the official news agency SUNA the Sudanese presidency said Bashir reiterated his support for the peace process and stability in South Sudan, stressing that any political development in the neighbouring country affects directly the Sudan.
Sudanese sources that declined to be named told Sudan Tribune that Bashir told the visiting envoy he is aware of the accusations of support to rebels by the South Sudanese officials and denied such allegations.
The Sudanese president further advised the former president of Botswana to handle patiently the implementation process in order to achieve it.
(ST)