Sudan, South Sudan back from brink of war
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E-mail Xinhua, March 17, 2012
Sudan and South Sudan have achieved a breakthrough in recent negotiations with the drafting of the framework agreements on national status and boundary demarcation.
Analysts believed that the progress pulled back the two nations from the brink of war and served a positive signal for both of them to pursue peace and avoid escalation of tensions.
Under the agreement on nationality, nationals of each state will be allowed in the other state with freedom of residence and movement as well as freedom to undertake economic activity and to acquire and dispose of property.
The agreement on the Demarcation of the Boundary and Related Issues provides the basis for demarcating what is Africa's longest boundary.
The agreements are to be signed by South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit and his Sudanese counterpart Omar al-Bashir at a meeting in Juba, capital of South Sudan, within two weeks.
This is the first visit for Bashir to his south neighbor since the declaration of independence of South Sudan last July.
"These agreements create a positive atmosphere for convening the summit. Particularly, it came shortly after escalation of tensions and traded accusations between the two sides," Dr. Mohamed Hassan Saeed, a lecturer of political science, told Xinhua.
The two sides have been trading accusations of supporting the opposition in each other country. Sudan says that South Sudan supports the rebels active at Blue Nile and South Kordofan areas, while South Sudan accuses Sudan of supporting the rebel groups in the south.
The Sudanese army accused South Sudan of supporting the Revolutionary Alliance which brings together Darfur armed movements and the SPLM/northern sector, to launch attacks against Buhairat Al-Abiyad area on the borderline between the two countries.
South Sudan accused on March 1 the Sudanese army of violating the south's air space, bombarding water and oil wells and moving 17 km inside its territories in the oil rich Unity State.
The Sudanese government has ordered to close the border with South Sudan, while the latter accused Sudan of "stealing" its oil and decided to stop oil production.
The UN Security Council called upon all parties concerned on March 6 to stop using violence and military action in areas near the border.
"The negotiations between the two sides have provided a mechanism that could be enhanced by a presidential decision with which outstanding difficulties and issues, such as oil, Abyei and external debts, can be overcome," Saeed said.
He further expressed optimism that the forthcoming summit would achieve a breakthrough to help resolve the outstanding issues, saying "the Addis Ababa agreements indicate that there is a political will on both sides and reflect their preference to dialogue instead of conflict."
However, not all analysts are optimistic about the prospect of the future development, with some saying implementation of the agreements on the ground might face difficulties.
Abdul-Rahim Al-Sunni, a Sudanese political analyst, told Xinhua that "many barriers may prevent the implementation of the agreement, particularly with regard to the fact that more than 500,000 South Sudanese live in the North."
"With the (Sudanese) government's rejection to grant duo-citizenship to these Southerners and its adherence to April 9, 2012 as the deadline for them to resolve their nationality, what the negotiators have built in Addis Ababa could be demolished," he added.
Al-Sunni, however, said he expects that the deadline be extended during the forthcoming summit between presidents Omar Al-Bashir and Salva Kiir in a week's time."
He further stressed that the issue of border demarcation also constitutes another barrier for the implementation of the agreements, saying "the joint committee for demarcating the border needs to immediately begin their work on the ground."
He added that "the border demarcation could collide with many issues, including the difference over five border points in addition to the fact that the borderline between the two countries is witnessing security tensions, particularly at Jao area in South Kordofan, besides areas in Blue Nile State."
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