Oct 30, 2020(Nyamilepedia) — South Sudanese Defense Minister Angelina Teny and her Sudanese counterpart Ibrahim Yassin on Thursday signed a joint defense and military cooperation agreement between the two countries.
According to a statement issued by the Military Media Centre in Khartoum, the agreement included “training, exchange of experiences, peace promotion, support and disaster management, as well as combating cross-border crimes, smuggling, human trafficking and combating the activities of anti-peace elements”.
The statement further noted that the agreement also, determined the implementation mechanisms at the levels of defense ministers, chiefs of staff and experts.
The military cooperation efforts are part of a wider attempt to strengthen the bilateral relations between Sudan and South Sudan.
On Tuesday, the two countries laid the foundation for a free trade zone in the area of Mokhaleef in El Jebelein locality to promote cross-border trade.
Sudan and South Sudan has also sought rapprochement on the Abyei region which is currently under supervision of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) as part of a UN peacekeeping mission
Kowal Deng Kowal, head of the administration of the Abyei region inaugurated a number of service facilities in the region on Thursday, including the Abyei Teaching Hospital, buildings of the Ministry of Local Governance, electricity offices, the Land Commission, and the General Secretariat for the Abyei Administration.
The inaugurations took place as Abyei was celebrating the seventh anniversary of the referendum in the region.
He told a local radio that the opening of these service facilities provide support to the people and expressed his hope that it will alleviate their suffering after decades of unrest, resulting in the destruction of most of the area’s infrastructure and mass displacement.
In a recent meeting to discuss Sudan and South Sudan relations, the UN Security Council hailed the improvement in bilateral relations between the two countries.
