Secretary-General welcomes latest agreement between Sudan and South Sudan

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon welcomed today the latest agreements reached by the Governments of Sudan and South Sudan on implementing further elements of their 2012 accords.

In a statement released by his spokesperson, the Secretary-General welcomed conclusions reached on implementation modalities of the 27 September 2012 Agreements at meetings held under the auspices of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel in Addis Ababa on 22 and 23 April 2013.

The agreements – signed in the Ethiopian capital under the auspices of the High-Level Panel – includes provisions on security, the common border and economic relations aimed at enabling the two nations to fulfil their obligations under a so-called roadmap for easing tensions, facilitating the resumption of negotiations on post-secession relations and normalizing the relations between the two countries.

The Secretary-General is also encouraged by the start of the direct talks today between the Government of Sudan and the opposition group SPLM/North, the spokesman said. “This demonstrates the commitment of both sides to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Southern Kordofan and Blue Nile states,” he added.

Mr. Ban urged the parties to agree on an immediate cessation of hostilities in order to allow for humanitarian access to the civilian population in the affected areas and to create an atmosphere conducive to a durable political solution of the conflict, he said.