How US envoy enabled a new level of diplomacy in war- ravaged Darfur

But that was an inconceivable demand since it would be impossible to imagine the Sudan Armed Forces leaving the region to the rebels.

So when Kiir’s task force finally brought together disparate Darfur rebel groups, only the small ones turned out and the peace treaty crumbled as soon as it had been signed.

Perhaps a peace deal could have been brokered earlier if SPLM had the trust of their godfathers — the Chadian and the Sudan rebels.

Instead, it later transpired, the two major foes, Deby and Bashir, never really trusted Kiir to broker peace.

In November 2008, a frustrated Kiir finally went public, telling visiting Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak that the two leaders had rejected his overtures.

It seemed, Kiir said, Sudan did not trust him, as First Vice President, to fulfil this role.

“We cannot conspire against the same government that we are in,” Kiir said.

Then in early 2008, Chadian rebels nearly swept Deby out of power.

According to all accounts, it was the French military that kept Deby in power.

In return, the JEM, made a daring attack on Khartoum that left the leadership shaken.

Chad and Sudan have had four other peace ventures previously, including one in Qatar last year, and another in Senegal in 2008, all of which crumbled.