The government of South Sudan said on Saturday that it had postponed the signing of a peace accord between the Sudanese government and armed groups until further notice.
Dhieu Mathok Diing, Secretary of the South Sudan mediation team in the Sudanese peace talks said the delay was caused by absence of senior government officials from Khartoum.
“The delay was caused by the leaders of the negotiation team from the government (Sudan) side. We are waiting for them to come to Juba then we resolve the unresolved issues which we believe are not very difficult,” Mathok told reporters in Juba.
The peace talks hosted in Juba were expected to conclude on June 20, followed by signing of a peace deal between the Sudanese government and opposition groups from Darfur, Nuba Mountains and Southern Kordofan regions.
Mathok said the mediation team had completed most of the sticking issues raised by the opposition groups earlier this year.
“We have finished the issues presented by the Sudanese opposition groups. The issues of power-sharing, wealth-sharing and issues of humanitarian, security, transitional justice and repatriation of displaced people are all finalized,” said Mathok.
He said talks would resume once the government negotiation team arrives in Juba, adding that a new date for signing the peace treaty would be communicated.
“We have reached agreement on the key issues except very few ones that we need the high-profile delegation to come from Sudan and resolve them,” Mathok said.
The Sudanese peace talks brokered by South Sudanese president Salva Kiir began in September 2019.
The talks aim to end years of civil unrest in Darfur, South Kordofan and Blue Nile regions.
