Dr. Riek Machar and President Kiir address the press at J1 on Dec 17, 2019. Credit. Emmanuel J Akile/Eye Radio.

The United Kingdom, United States and Norway have called on leaders of South Sudan to fulfill their commitments to achieving lasting and sustainable peace in the country.

The three countries-jointly known as the Troika’s call comes on the 50-day mark of the extended pre-transitional period of 100 days.

South Sudan leaders are struggling to implement the revitalized peace agreement which they signed in September 2018.

They have postponed twice formation of a unity government to allow for full implementation of the security arrangements and resolve disagreement over the number of states and boundaries.

However, some political commentators and civil society activists have recently questioned the leaders’ willingness to speed up implementation of the agreement as the extended February deadline nears.

See full statement

Troika Statement at the 50-Day Mark: A Progress Review of the Formation of South Sudan’s Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity

January 2, 2020.

The text of the following statement was issued jointly by the Governments of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, and Norway.

The Troika remains committed to the people of South Sudan and at this important point, we call upon all parties to meet their commitments to deliver lasting peace.  With less than six weeks remaining to meet the extended deadline to form a Transitional Government of National Unity, South Sudan’s leaders have a clear duty to their citizens to deliver.  We commend the leadership of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development in its continued efforts to mediate among the parties, and we commit to work with the region to ensure that the parties deliver progress.

We welcome the recent meetings between leaders of key parties and their public commitment to form a government of national unity by the February deadline.  We urge all sides to build on this, to continue dialogue, and to ensure meaningful progress.  We call on all sides to further demonstrate that they possess the political will to deliver peace.  We also remind all parties to uphold, and affirm publicly, their commitment to the permanent ceasefire, and to instruct their forces to exercise restraint.  Each delay in implementation worsens the urgent humanitarian crisis and shakes the people’s confidence in their leaders.

Ending reliance on military force and creating political space for a diverse range of voices from all political parties, civil society, and the media is essential to creating a durable peace and an inclusive government that represents the interests of all parties to the agreement.

We echo the voices of South Sudan’s civil society leaders, who have called on the government to fund the peace process transparently, and we encourage all signatories to demonstrate measurable progress on the issues of states and boundaries and on the implementation of pre-transitional security arrangements.  We encourage South Sudan’s recommitment to the inclusion of at least 35 percent of women in every level of government as decided by all the parties.

The people of South Sudan deserve a government that respects human rights and leaders who make necessary compromises for the greater good of the country.  We urge the signatories to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCSS) to fulfill their obligations to represent the interests of all South Sudanese, do all that is required to form an inclusive national unity government, and lay the foundations for the next steps of South Sudan’s peace process and political transition.