Troika nations to transport Machar’s bodyguards to Juba

February 15, 2016 (JUBA) – The Troika nations, which comprises of the United Kingdom, United States and Norway, will transport bodyguards of South Sudan’s vice president, Riek Machar to the capital, Juba, a senior diplomat disclosed on Monday.

Richard Croker, the UK deputy ambassador to South Sudan, said communication between the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) and the armed opposition faction was ongoing to ascertain the number of troops that would constitute Machar’s protection units.

“We need to hear and say okay how many locations, not just Pagak but many locations and that costs a lot of money; logistically [it is] very difficult,” he said during Eye Radio’s Sundown program held on Monday.

Pagak is the headquarters for the SPLM IO. The opposition has presence in greater Upper Nile region, including Jonglei, Unity and Upper Nile states.

Last week, South Sudan President Salva Kiir appointed Machar first vice-president in accordance to the peace agreement signed in August, 2015.

Machar, however, told a briefing over the weekend in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, that his arrival to Juba depends on the transportation of his bodyguards – a strong force on nearly 3,000 police and army to Juba.

The opposition group said they did not have the required logistics to transport its forces from various locations in South Sudan into the capital as required by the peace agreement.

The top UK diplomat, however, said the Troika’s support to South Sudan’s peace process seeks to ensure the suffering of the young nation’s citizens is alleviated.

“If the government can’t pay for it and the IO [armed opposition] can’t pay for it, we need to see what can donors pay for to bring enough people back to get the government underway,” stressed Croker.

“We need to see practical actions on the ground from all sides. We have seen some already, we have [been] in touch with the IO regularly, directly and through JMEC, and JMEC and IO have been working over across the weekend to give us a definitive list of the numbers,” he added.

The UK diplomat did not, however, disclose when the said form of transportation would be provided to members of South Sudan’s armed opposition forces, as planned.

Meanwhile, President Kiir has hinted on the possibility of forming the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU) this week, and gave the country’s first vice-president seven days within which to report to the South Sudanese capital.

(ST)