South Sudan, Sudan Sign Memorandum to strengthen bilateral cooperation

The document was signed in Juba by South Sudan’s Minister of Defense and Veterans Affairs, Lt. Gen. Chol Thon Balok, and Sudan’s Minister of Defense and Co-Chair of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism, Lt. Gen. Hassan Daoud Kabroun.

Speaking after the signing ceremony, Minister Chol Thon Balok said South Sudan and Sudan share a long border and have established mechanisms to oversee the implementation of agreements signed between the two nations.

For his part, Lt. Gen. Hassan Daoud said the memorandum reaffirms commitments made under previous agreements and strengthens cooperation on political, security and economic matters.

“Our visit is a confirmation of the lasting friendship and strong relations between the two countries and the two peoples,” Daoud said. “We have come to promote and follow up on previous agreements under the Joint Political Security Council between the two countries and all matters related to political, security and economic issues.”

Minister Chol noted that while mechanisms for cooperation along the common border had been established previously, their activities were disrupted by the conflict in Sudan.

He said both countries have now agreed to resume and reactivate the joint mechanisms to facilitate implementation of existing agreements.

“South Sudan and Sudan have a very long border, and the mechanisms responsible for implementing the agreements have existed for a long time,” Chol said. “The political and security mechanisms have not been active for a while because of the situation in Sudan. Now, we have resumed activities and renewed our commitment to implementing these agreements.”

The renewed cooperation is expected to bolster coordination on border security, political dialogue and economic cooperation between the two countries.