Sudantribune.com: South Sudan lauds diplomatic efforts to block UN sanctions

September 20, 2015 (JUBA) - South Sudan government has commemeded diplomatic efforts by its foreign affairs ministry to strenghten ties and relations with other countries.

South Sudanese Foreign Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin (L) meets with Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Ghandour (R) for talks under mediation of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, September 10, 2015 (Photo Reuters/Maxim Shemetov)

The young nation’s information minister, Michael Makuei Lueth told the state-owned SSTV that the council of ministers was, at its Friday meeting, briefed by his foreign affairs counterpart, Barnaba Marial Benjamin on his recent trip to East Africa and Russia.

The council of ministers, during its meeting chaired by President Salva Kiir, reportedly praised Marial for his successful mission to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania and Russia.

"The council commended and appreciated the efforts exerted by the minister of foreign affairs in his recent regional tour of Uganda, Tanzania, Kenya and successfully ended his mission with a meeting with Sudanese foreign minister in Russia where he managed to secure the support of the Russian government to block the imposition of sanctions. As the government, we commend and appreciate the government of Russia, Angola, china and Venezuela with standing with us in our quest for peace," Lueth said on Saturday.

This is not time for sanctions. The people of South Sudan and the government need peace and support for implementation of peace agreement, not sanctions”, he added.

Meanwhile, Gordon Buay, a government representatives at its diplomatic mission in the United States separately told Sudan Tribune that the people of South Sudan were extremely delighted with the performance of their diplomats in Moscow for improving diplomatic relations between the world’s youngest nation and the Russian Federation.

According to Buay, the friendly relationship between the people of the Republic of South Sudan and the Russian people goes back to the time of the armed liberation struggle.

“It should be noted that the former Soviet Union supported the SPLM/A militarily for eight years to fight for the freedom of the people of South Sudan. The support the SPLA Movement obtained from Russia during the cold war from 1983—91 gave the people of South Sudan the opportunity to liberate themselves from their oppressors”, he said.

South Sudanese diplomats in Russia, he stressed, did a "marvelous" job in persuading the Russian government to help bring together Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan.

Buay further explained that the bilateral talks, which took place on 10 September, 2015, and eventually led to joint communique from the foreign ministers of Sudan and South Sudan, could be credited to the diplomatic work of South Sudan diplomats in Moscow.

“Most importantly, the South Sudan diplomats in Moscow should be congratulated and appreciated for persuading the Russian Federation to reject and oppose sanctions that were proposed by some Western countries at the UN Security Council against individuals in South Sudan”, he said.

Russia was one of the countries that recognised the independence of South Sudan when it broke away from Sudan in July, 2011. This followed a referendum held earlier that year.