Salva Kiir Mayarhdit
Khartoum — South Sudan’s Foreign Minister Barnaba Benjamin on Thursday reiterated that the South Sudan army would soon recapture Bor and Bantio towns, held by rebels loyal to former vice president Riek Machar.“The government in South Sudan is in complete control of the situation, and there is no existence for the rebels except for in Bor and Bantio which the army will soon restore control over them,” Benjamin told reporters following his meeting with Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir in Khartoum on Thursday.
“The position of the government is constitutional and legal, and its responsibility is to impose the law and preserve the national sovereignty, therefore, the government, as it is continuing the negotiations in Addis Ababa, is also working to bring the matters on the ground back to normal,” he added.
He further said that the government was in control of all the oil facilities in the south, save for some in Unity State which the rebels are holding.
“All the oil institutions are safe and operating normally, except some of Unity wells,” he noted.
He went on to say “the governments of South Sudan and the Republic of Sudan are concerned with the oil areas because oil is the main resource for the two countries’ economies, and we will not allow this vital line to stop or be harmed”.
Benjamin reiterated his country’s rejection of the rebels’ demands to release detainees who accused of planning a military coup, saying “South Sudan is governed by a constitution, and the detainees will not be released until the investigations with them are over. These investigations have already started”.
Sudan’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Ali Karti, for his part, said the visit of his South Sudanese counterpart to Khartoum was aimed at speeding up implementation of the co-operation agreements signed by the two countries.
He further reiterated that what is happening in South Sudan did not affect much implementation of the agreements signed between Khartoum and Juba, adding “we are working together to implement what we have agreed on and achieve the goals for which those agreements have been signed”.
Benjamin arrived in Khartoum on Thursday, held talks with Sudanese President al-Bashir and delivered a message from South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
During the past weeks, South Sudan has witnessed clashes between two military factions, one from the Dinka tribe, to which President Kiir belongs, and the other from the Nuer tribe, to which former vice president Machar belongs.
The clashes have effectively left more than 1 000 people dead and over 121 600 civilians displaced, as well as some 63 000 others who have taken refuge at various UN compounds around the country, according to UN reports. — Xinhua