UN chief ‘deeply concerned’ over military clashes on Sudan-South Sudan border | WPN World People News

Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is deeply concerned about the military clashes in the border region of Sudan and South Sudan, and calls on their Governments to fully respect and implement the agreements they have already reached on security, border monitoring and the disputed area of Abyei, Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said today.

The disputed town of Abyei was the scene of renewed violence in May 2011 after Sudanese Government forces took over the area.

“He urges the parties to utilize to the fullest extent existing political and security mechanisms to peacefully address their differences,” his spokesperson said in a statement.

There have been media reports that the armed forces of each country clashed on Monday around their shared border region, and that Sudan's President Omar Al-Bashir has suspended plans to attend a meeting with his South Sudanese counterpart, Salva Kiir, on 3 April.

The Governments of Sudan and South Sudan have been in talks aimed at resolving post-independence issues, including agreements reached on the status of citizens of each State and the demarcation of the border.

In his statement, Mr. Ban’s spokesperson said he welcomes the spirit of cooperation recently shown by the two Governments in addressing outstanding post-secession issues, and urged their Heads of State to meet as planned in on 3 April.

Source: UN NEWS