UN urges early formation of transitional government in South Sudan

The UN Security Council on Tuesday urged the early formation of transitional government in South Sudan.

The statement came as Liu Jieyi, the Chinese UN ambassador who holds the rotating council presidency for April, was speaking to reporters here after the 15-nation council was briefed by Herve Ladsous, the UN under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, on the current situation in South Sudan.

"The Security Council strongly urged all parties to quickly form the transitional government and fully implement the peace agreement to realize lasting peace, reconciliation and national rebuilding of South Sudan," Liu said.

The Security Council appreciated the work of the chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission, former President Festus Mogae, and the African Union high representative, former President Alpha Oumar Konare, in their efforts to promote the peace process in South Sudan, he said.

"The members of the Security Council noted that there is much work to be done to bring peace and stability to South Sudan," he said. "The members of the Security Council demanded the parties to comply with their obligations, the international law and respect human rights."

"The members of the Security Council expressed their alarm at the dire humanitarian situation and demanded the parties to facilitate humanitarian access as well as allow the free movement of UN personnel to carry out their duties," he said.

The security situation in South Sudan remains precarious, intermittent fighting occurred in several areas of the country, Ladsous said in his briefing to the Security Council, stressing the need for unimpeded movement by the UN Mission in South Sudan and humanitarian partners in order to address the worsening humanitarian and human rights situation.

South Sudan was born in 2011 to great international fanfare. But shortly after independence, it spiraled into a civil war that killed tens of thousands and displaced more than 2 million people.

Civil war erupted in South Sudan in December 2013 when President Salva Kiir accused his former deputy Machar of planning a coup, setting off a cycle of retaliatory killings that have split the country along ethnic lines.

Nearly two years of peace negotiations in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, yielded several ceasefires, and recommitments to cease-fires, that were broken almost immediately.

Source: XINHUA