Ambassador Donald Booth, US Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan

The US Special Envoy to Sudan and South Sudan says interests of regional countries had sometimes complicated the South Sudan peace process.

Amb Donald Booth says the conflicting interests of these states influenced their approach to the process and at times changed the direction of the negotiations.

Some also became participants, instead of being mediators in the conflict.

Amb Booth made the remarks last week at the Chatham House in London during a forum on “South Sudan, Africa, and the Challenge of Peacemaking.”

Amb Booth said South Sudanese parties responded to these regional dynamics by seeking by support from neighboring countries, and undermining the prospect of regional unity.

He said while African states and the West share a common interest in ending conflicts, there is a desire on the continent to forge “African solutions to African problems”.

Amb Donald stated that the case of South Sudan shows that the viability and merits of a peace process led by a region depend on the circumstances of the particular region.

He added that a mediation from outside the immediate region, with no direct interests at stake, is the alternative.