The African Union has welcomed the outcomes of a recent meeting of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism between Sudan and South Sudan.

Delegates from Juba, including Foreign Minister Deng Alor Kuol and Defense Minister Kuol Manyang Juuk were in Khartoum over the weekend to meet their Sudanese counterparts to follow up the implementation of the cooperation agreements.

They agreed on freedom of movement and trade across the border and to complete redeployment of forces across the buffer zone.

They also agreed to reactivate the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism, the Border Ad Hoc Committee and the Technical Border Corridors Committee.

In a statement from Addis Ababa last evening, the chairperson of the AU Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini- Zuma, says the step is encouraging.

She urges the two governments to implement the agreed decisions in accordance with the stated timeframes.

Dr Dlamini says this would create the necessary conditions for the existence of two viable states at peace with each other, for the good of the peoples.