Juba, Khartoum Complete Withdrawal Of Forces Along Buffer Zone

JUBA, 18 September 2016 [Gurtong]- Hon. Michael Makuei Lueth, South Sudan Minister of Information and government spokesperson last week Friday to the press after the cabinet ministers meeting that was chaired by President Salva Kiir.

The Minister said the report came after the cabinet listened on the security reports in the country presented by Deputy Defence Minister General David Yau Yau.

“The government of South Sudan has completed its withdrawal of forces from central line and we are currently out of buffer zone,” Hon Makuei revealed to the press on Friday.

Makuei said that the two countries completed withdrawing their troops from the demilitarized zone late August this year, despite the agreed timeline of March 14.

In June, Juba and Khartoum signed series of security agreements including redeployment of joint military forces along the safe Demilitarized Border zone (SDBZ), and approved to stop supporting and harbouring rebels as well as resumption of oil exportation.

“We will now continue with the programs of African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP), and we shall send in our representative with an observer status so that we continue to work together,” he said.

The government spokesperson revealed that Sudan has also replicated the same and the two former foes are now moving towards normalizing their relations collectively.

In October 2015, the two countries defence ministers co-chaired Joint Political and Security Committee (JPSC) in Khartoum and discussed the activation of the security arrangement agreed in 2012.

South Sudan seceded from the north on July 2011 after decades of civil strife but border disputes and disagreements over oil pipeline fees have dragged on, delaying much-needed economic development between the two countries.

However, the former civil war foes have made a number of agreements about border security in the past, but both have failed to implement them.