Cabinet has welcomed the start of pre-negotiation talks between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, which commenced in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, on 6 May 2023.

This comes after tensions erupted in Sudan on 15 April between the army and the Rapid Support, killing over 600 people and injuring thousands more.

“A peaceful Sudan, led by a civilian government, is essential not only for Sudan but also for the broader region and the continent. Cabinet therefore calls on both parties to negotiate an agreement to end the conflict and alleviate the suffering of the Sudanese people,” said Minister in the Presidency, Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, on Thursday.

Meanwhile, in the same Cabinet statement read by Ntshavheni, she said the Executive was pleased that all South Africans, who had indicated that they wish to return from conflict-stricken Sudan, are now back home.

Ntshavheni thanked the neighbouring countries for assisting in their efforts to safely transport South Africans who were stranded.

The Minister said President Cyril Ramaphosa participated in the 11th High-Level Segment of the Regional Oversight Mechanism of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the Great Lakes Region, in Burundi, as part of advancing the initiative by African Union to silence the gun by 2030.

The President also attended the Extraordinary Organ Troika Summit Plus in Namibia.

The summit, according to Cabinet, received a report from the SADC Field Assessment Mission in the eastern DRC and considered the regional response to the escalating security and humanitarian situation.

“The summit agreed that the AU [African Union] must coordinate the various peacekeeping and security improvement efforts on the Eastern DRC.” – SAnews.gov.za

Source: South African Government News Agency