South Sudanese parties strike deal on security arrangement chapter
July 5, 2018 (KHARTOUM) – South Sudanese belligerents have reached an agreement on the security arrangements as they settled the last four outstanding issues paving the way for discussions on pending issues in the governance chapter.
“The final draft agreement will be signed in an official ceremony in presence of President Omer al-Bashir, the guarantor of the negotiation process,” al-Shami said adding that the signing date of the agreement will be announced later.
The negotiations were mediated by the Sudanese army officials, and the participant held a meeting on Wednesday with the Sudanese defence minister to discuss the last modification to the draft agreement.
Al-Shamdi didn’t disclose the details of the deal on the four unsettled issues but pointed to the positive spirit of the talks and the keenness of the parties to achieve peace.
The Sudanese military numbered the four key areas of disagreement on the security arrangements saying they include determination of demilitarized areas; troops’ cantonment modalities; the timeframe for unification of forces, and the number of parties’ representatives in the Joint Transitional Security Committee.
In the Declaration of Agreement of 27 June, the parties pledged to settle the outstanding issues in the security arrangements and the governance chapters in Khartoum.
On Wednesday, South Sudanese government spokesperson Minister Michael Makuei Lueth said they would now start discussions on the three unresolved issues in the power-sharing chapter. Therefore, it is not clear if they can strike a deal on it.
By the weekend, the parties will move to Nairobi to resume talks there.
EU & TROIKA BRIEFED
In a related development, Foreign Minister El-Dirdeiry Mohamed Ahmed met on Thursday with the European Union and Troika ambassadors in Khartoum.
According to the spokesman for the Foreign Ministry, Ambassador Garib-Allah al-Khidir, the minister extensively briefed the foreign diplomats on the ongoing negotiations between the South Sudanese negotiating teams under the IGAD umbrella in Khartoum.
Further, the minister urged the European Union and the Troika countries to provide the necessary support for these negotiations in order to achieve peace and stability in South Sudan.
(ST)