Sudan's transitional government on Tuesday postponed peace talks with a rebel group in the south of the country that did not sign a peace deal reached last year, Sudanese officials said.
Read also: South Sudan: the UN extends the arms embargo by one year
At the end of May, the authorities resumed discussions in the capital of South Sudan, Juba, with the leader of the Popular Movement for the Liberation of Sudan-North (SPLM-North), established in the States of South Kordofan and Blue Nile. In March, they signed a
"declaration of principles"
, to serve as a basis for peace negotiations, providing for the establishment of a secular state and
"the unification"
of the armed forces.
"The mediators decided to postpone (Tuesday) the direct negotiations between the transitional government and the SPLM-North for additional consultations on certain disputes,"
said the Sudanese Sovereign Council in a statement.
Power's negotiators have returned to Khartoum, according to the text. The two parties signed
"a non-final framework document comprising their points of agreement and disagreement,"
added the same source without specifying these points. This week, United Nations humanitarian agencies announced that they had obtained for the first time since 2011 access to areas controlled by the SPLM-North in South Kordofan and Blue Nile, where some 800,000 people live who
"struggle and survive with it. very little or nothing ”.
The power, made up of soldiers and civilians put in place after the popular revolt which led to the dismissal of Omar al-Bashir in April 2019, has made peace with the rebels its priority. In October 2020, he signed a historic agreement with several rebel groups. The SPLM-North has signed a separate ceasefire, allowing its fighters to keep their weapons
"to ensure their own protection"
until the Constitution is amended to guarantee the separation of religion and religion. the state.