SUDAN: COUNTRIES SIGN BORDER PACT TO ENHANCE SECURITY

Sudan and South Sudan have signed an agreement to monitor their shared borders and open crossing points a few days after Khartoum said it was experiencing an influx of southerners returning to the north.

According to Sudan Tribune, the agreement announced on Sunday 18 follows a meeting in Khartoum between Sudan’s Defence Minister Abdel-Rahim Mohamed Hussein and his southern counterpart John Kong Nyuon.

Hussein told reporters that ten crossing points will be opened along the 2,200 km borders, which remain partially un-demarcated even after South Sudan gained full independence in July this year. The deal comes amid rising tension between the ex-war foes after fighting erupted in Sudan’s borders states of South Kordofan and Blue Nile between the country’s army and combatants who fought alongside southerners during the civil war.

Sudan accuses the South of supporting its erstwhile allies in the two states, a charge Juba denies. Hussein revealed that 300 monitoring teams consisting of six individuals from north Sudan army, six from the southern army and six Ethiopian peacekeepers would oversee cross-border arrangements and investigate any violation on the ground.

According to the Sudanese minister, the crossing points would be devoid of the northern and southern army. Sudan says that 80 percent of the administrative borders with the south had been defined. The South recently accused Khartoum of blocking trade routes to the south, saying the action had led to increasing prices of fuel and basic commodities.

The two sides agreed on Sunday to meet next month, after consultations by a joint technical committee with the members of border demarcation, to decide where to locate the ten crossing points.

“This agreement will strengthen the exchange between the two people … We don’t see any conflicts,” Hussein said. For his part, John Kong Nyuon described the relations between the two countries as improving and important, adding “without border security citizens will not be happy.”