Envoys from African nations, key donor countries, and the European Union called for immediate steps to accelerate peace in South Sudan during a high-level meeting in Juba on Thursday, underscoring the need for direct talks between the country’s rival leaders.
The gathering, hosted by the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (R-JMEC), brought together ambassadors and representatives from Canada, Djibouti, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Kenya, Norway, the Netherlands, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the EU.
Attendees commended the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) for its regional leadership, including a summit held virtually on Wednesday, and stressed that sustained dialogue between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar is critical to implementing the 2018 Revitalized Agreement.
“All parties must prioritize open communication and compromise to avoid further delays in the peace process,” the envoys said in a joint statement, urging South Sudan’s transitional government to address unresolved issues such as security reforms and election preparations.
The R-JMEC, tasked with overseeing the peace deal, has repeatedly warned that missed deadlines threaten stability ahead of scheduled elections in late 2026.
Thursday’s meeting marked the latest international push to prevent backsliding in the world’s youngest nation, which has struggled with political violence and humanitarian crises since gaining independence in 2011.
In recent weeks, tensions have escalated in South Sudan amid rising violence in Upper Nile State.
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar are at the center of the renewed insecurity.
The two leaders are parties to a fragile 2018 peace agreement that ended a five-year civil war.