Burhan, Salva Kiir Discuss Bilateral Ties, Peace in South Sudan

Head of Sudan’s Sovereign Transitional Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and President of South Sudan Salva Kiir during their meeting in Juba on Tuesday, August 30, 2022. (SUNA)

Head of Sudan’s Sovereign Transitional Council Abdel Fattah al-Burhan discussed Tuesday in Juba with President of South Sudan Salva Kiir Mayardit bilateral ties and the peace process in South Sudan.

Burhan arrived in the South Sudanese capital on Tuesday heading a delegation for a one-day visit to attend the graduation ceremony of the first batch of fighters from the army and rebel factions that signed the 2018 peace deal.

The unification of forces loyal to Kiir and his rival, Vice President Riek Machar, was a key condition of the deal that ended the brutal five-year conflict in which nearly 40,000 people died.

Heads of state, governments and regional and international organizations attended the event in Juba.

Given his post as Head of the African Intergovernmental Development Organization (IGAD) for this year, Burhan monitors the implementation of the peace deal in South Sudan.

South Sudan’s prime minister had proposed an initiative to hold a summit including presidents of Sudan and Ethiopia to resolve the outstanding border issues between the two countries.

The dismissed Sudanese government mediated between the government of South Sudan and the rebel factions and led to the signing of the political power-sharing agreement.

The deal stipulated integrating forces of the opposition factions in training camps and eventually unifying them to form a unified army.