As US Sanctions Kiir & Machar Proxies, Bor Unacted On, IGAD Not In UNMISS?
By Matthew Russell Lee
UNITED NATIONS, May 6, 2014 -- When the United States announced South Sudan
sanctions on Marial Chanuong and Peter Gadet on May 6 it seemed crafted as a
balanced message, the targets proxies for Salva Kiir and Riek Machar
respectively.
A US Senior Administration Official, when asked by Inner City Press if
thought had been or will be given to sanctioning the Kiir government
officials who took to the radio waves prior to the deadly attack on the UN
compound of UNMISS in Bor, resisted discussing anyone not yet on the list.
But it would seem clear that there could be at least one further
intermediary step of sanctions before reaching Kiir and his former Vice
President.
Gadet was previously used by the government for disarmament. Inner City
Press asked UN envoy Hilde Johnson about it on March 15, 2012
<
http://www.innercitypress.com/jonglei2disarm031512.html> and Johnson
replied that to "us in the UN" who did the disarmament, including Gadet, was
"less than relevant. Now Gadet is under US sanctions.
Beyond the sanctions, Inner City Press asked the US Senior Administration
Officials about Secretary of State John Kerry's emphasis in Addis Ababa on
the need for a legitimate force to help make peace
<
http://www.state.gov/secretary/remarks/2014/05/225455.htm> : in the US'
thinking, would this force be part of UNMISS?
A second Senior Administration Official replied that conversations are
ongoing, that the regional force would be related but, it seems, might be
separate.
The Eastern Congo model, of a Force Intervention Brigade parallel to the
UN mission MONUSCO, comes to mind. The Senior Administration Official
specifically praised the role of Ethiopia and Kenya as mediators and did not
in this response mention Uganda. Watch this site.
Received on Tue May 06 2014 - 17:33:36 EDT