BLOG

The UN Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution on Wednesday demanding that Sudan and South Sudan immediately stop fighting and conclude negotiations within three months on the issues of citizenship, oil revenue sharing, borders, and the status of Abyei. 

Tensions between the two countries reached a fever pitch when South Sudan took over the oil-producing town of Heglig inside the north, with Sudan retaliating through a series of aerial bombardments. There was a general fear within the UN that both countries were headed to war again, and in its resolution the Security Council made clear that the two countries’ actions constituted a threat to international peace and security.

Another important part of the resolution was its endorsement of the African Union Peace and Security Council Communiqué of April 24. Thabo Mbeki, the lead negotiator for the AU’s High Level Implementation Panel, has repeatedly said that both countries have been unwilling to negotiate in good faith. And here in New York, there’s a sense among some members of the Security Council that each side’s priority is to harm the other, even at the risk of undermining their own self interest.

This sense of frustration came across in Wednesday’s resolution, with the Security Council threatening sanctions if both parties did not comply with its demands. Since both the U.S. (Juba’s most vocal supporter among the P-5) and China (which is the closest Khartoum) voted for the resolution, perhaps this threat of sanctions will force the parties back to the negotiating table.

One of RI’s primary preoccupations has been the issue of citizenship and the prevention of statelessness in the Sudans. The parties have negotiated a “four freedoms” agreement that would grant nationals of both countries freedom of movement, residence, employment and property. Before the most recent conflict erupted, the agreement was awaiting both presidents’ signatures, but it was put on the back burner as tensions rose and remains there today. We hope that the deadlines imposed by the UN and AU will ensure this agreement is signed and implemented without delay. May 03, 2012 | Tagged as: Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Protection & Security, Statelessness