UK diplomat says South Sudan and Sudan must work together to resolve Abyei’s political status|Photo|Courtesy

UK Deputy Permanent Representative to the UN says his country remains concerned by the lack of progress towards the resolution of Abyei’s political status and urged South Sudan and Sudan governments to re-engage in dialogue.

Diplomat James Kariuki made the remarks the UN Security Council meeting in New York on Tuesday.

While citing Ms. Pobee, UNISFA’s Assistant Secretary-General Mr Kariuki, underscored that despite ongoing tensions, report stated that there have been no inter communal clashes since April.

“We remain concerned by the lack of progress on a political solution for Abyei. Sudan and South Sudan must re-engage in dialogue towards the resolution of Abyei’s political status”, said Kariuki in a statment.

He emphasized the importance of UNISFA’s work in maintaining peace in a fragile region to ensure this positive trend continues.

Meanwhile, he stressed the need for the Government of South Sudan and the Sudanese authorities to remove obstacles to UNISFA’s operations.

“We call on the Sudanese authorities urgently to issue visas for UN civilian and police personnel to help UNISFA address increasing crime-related threats in Abyei.

“We also re-iterate our calls on the leaders of South Sudan to withdraw the People’s Defence Forces from Abyei. These forces compromise Abyei’s demilitarised status and violate the 2011 Status of Forces Agreement”, he added.

According to Kariuki, UNISFA’s report indicated credible evidence of arms proliferation which compromises the security of Abyei.

He further noted resettlement of 24,000 refugees and returnees who have arrived in Abyei since the outbreak of the conflict.

In regard to this, the UK top diplomat urged the parties to open the Athony airstrip to facilitate humanitarian access and to enable UNISFA’s operations.

He warns that the deteriorating conflict in Sudan and the challenges in South Sudan make the work of the mission more important than ever, and urged for support to UNISFA to discharge its mandate fully.