Win-win: Why Khartoum brokered 2018 peace deal in South Sudan
South Sudanese rebel leader Riek Machar (2nd right) signs ceasefire documents in Khartoum on June 27, 2018. Next to him is Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir (centre) and South Sudan President Salva Kiir. PHOTO | ASHRAF SHAZLY | AFP
As South Sudan begins to rebuild from scratch following a peace deal signed in September 2018 between the main rival factions, the region’s countries with economic interests in the world’s youngest nation remain edgy, even as Khartoum is confident that the permanent ceasefire will hold this time round. The agreement signed in Khartoum between longtime rivals president Salva Kiir and his former deputy Riek Machar – was brokered by an unlikely mediator in Sudan President Omar al-Bashir – after the two previous peace deals had broken down, plunging the country back into conflict.
But South Sudanese officials highlight as key the fact that Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni also agreed to come on board to support the peace deal that al-Bashir had on the table.
