The UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, Herve Ladsous, announced on Tuesday the completion of the first UN exercise, verifying the withdrawal of Sudan and South Sudan’s militaries from the disputed oil-rich region of Abyei.

The verification process will be carried out by the United Nations Interim Security Force in Abyei (UNISFA) and conclude on 12^thApril this year.  It is the first joint investigative mission between Juba and Khartoum, a first important step towards the implementation of security arrangements agreed recently between the two countries.

There is more to do, Ladsous added, as it is necessary to build on this success in order to achieve long-term peace and stability in the region.

UNISFA was formed as a result of a UN Security Council resolution in June 2011 and followed by an expansion of its mandate on 15 December 2011 to include several new functions including monitoring of the common border.

Photo: Herve Ladsous (unmultimedia.org)