Sudan’s foreign ministry has announced that China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi is scheduled to arrive in Khartoum on Sunday. This coincides with the start of a regional conference on South Sudan’s political and security situation in Khartoum on Monday.
According to the ministry, the Chinese-led meeting will bring together the two warring parties in South Sudan led by Salva Kiir and Riek Machar to seek a solution to the conflict.
China’s foreign ministry confirmed the plan for the visit in its own press release, saying the visit was part of a wider African tour including also Kenya, Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
For its part, the government of South Sudan announced that its own delegation headed by its foreign minister will leave for Khartoum on Sunday.
“There is another peace initiative which came up from the Chinese government saying that there is need for the warring parties and the members of IGAD to go to Khartoum for that peace initiative… We are going to listen to the Chinese initiative,” said government spokesman Michael Makuei.