South Sudan Official Urges Dialogue to Resolve Sudan’s Crisis

President Kiir speaks to the media on March 28, 2022

June 16, 2022 (JUBA) – A South Sudanese official has said the country’s leadership prefers the use of dialogue to resolve the political crisis in Sudan.

“As far as I know, the issue of Abyei is at the top level of the leadership. It is not at the level of the Abyei Joint Oversight Committee. It is not the level of the Abyei chief Administrator, not even at the level of the traditional leadership between the two countries. It is an issue above these levels”, a highly placed source at the presidency told Sudan Tribune on Thursday.

The official, who preferred anonymity, commended the effort of the Abyei Joint Oversight Committee (AJOC) in collaboration with the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and local authorities in coordinating security and political activities to ensure stability in the area.

“It looks like President Salva [Kiir] has adopted a new strategy. He prefers not to intervene in the dispute, leaving it to his security adviser Tut Gatluak and the vice president of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, Gen Mohammed Hamdan Daglo to handle the situation with the support of the UN force for Abyei. This was why the May agreement between the Misseriya and Ngok has several flaws but if implemented, it will pave way for future discussion on the final status of Abyei,” he explained.

Last month, the Abyei Chief Administrator, Kuol Deim Kuol acknowledged the challenges involved in efforts to find a solution on the final status of the disputed area, citing Sudan’s internal crisis which has affected AJOC’s work.

Relations between the leadership in Sudan and South Sudan have remarkably improved after the ousting of the former Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019.  The mediations which saw opposition fighting to remove the government in either country, signed two separate agreements that have strengthened ties between the two countries.

Due to the improved relations, the leadership of the two countries now prefer to amicably settle the final status of Abyei as part of the understanding and holistic approach to resolving border conflicts and how to share resources.

(ST)