Arms embargo derailing security plans, government laments

The government said arms embargo has stalled the implementation of the provisions of security arrangement, graduation and redeployment of 83,000 necessary unified forces critical to Revitalised Peace Agreement.

There has been a delay, for close to 15 months in graduation of over 20,000 joint government and opposition forces at various training centres across the country, who were to form the first batch of the necessary unified forces.

Since 2020, the National Transitional Committee (NTC)—the body tasked to oversee the smooth peace implementation process— said the forces could not be graduated due to financial and logistical challenges.

Half of the forces have deserted the camps in search for food, medicine, safe and clean drinking water and shelter, according to the Ceasefire Transitional Security, Monitoring and Evaluation Mechanism.

Presidential trip

Last week, President Salva Kiir travelled to South Africa to meet his counterpart, Cyril Ramaphosa, for bilateral talks aimed at pushing international community to back the full implementation of pending tasks of the Revitalised Agreement on Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (R-ARCRSS).

On Monday April 12, after Kiir’s return, Minister of Presidential Affairs, Dr. Barnabas Marial Benjamin, said Kiir presented to Cyril Ramaphosa the status of peace agreement and how they could work together to find solution to arms embargo that has affected the implementation of the security arrangement.

Bennjamin said Kiir and Ramaphosa discussed how sanctions and arms embargo were hurting the implementation process of the peace deal despite commitment by the unity government to security sector reform.

“They (joint forces) were supposed to be graduated, so, President [Kiir] assured and was assured by Cyril Ramaphosa that they should work together, that this issue of arms embargo delays the implementation process of the peace deal,” the minister said.

In May 2020, the UN Security Council extended arms embargo on South Sudan and targeted sanctions on individuals accused of being architects of the recurring conflict in the youngest African country.

In the same year, Kiir said there were no guns to enable graduation of the forces.

But the main armed opposition group led by the First Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar, revealed that lack of formation of joint command to include commanders of opposition groups was another reason delaying the graduation of forces.

Dr. Marial also pointed out that President Kiir had discussed with Ramaphosa key issues delaying peace implementation, which needed critical attention and support.

“President [Kiir] assured his brother Cyril Ramaphosa that there are silent areas in the agreement which were not covered, now these silent areas had to be negotiated by the parties in order to get solutions, this adds to the delay,” he said.