Egypt has welcomed the announcement of the formation of a coalition government in South Sudan, the foreign ministry said on Sunday.
Rival South Sudanese leaders formed a coalition government on Sunday, and South Sudanese rebel leader Riek Machar was sworn in as first vice president to his rival President Salva Kiir.
In its statement, the foreign affairs ministry said that Egypt hopes this step will prompt more efforts towards fully implementing the country’s peace agreement, in order to achieve lasting and comprehensive peace.
The statement emphasised Egypt’s keenness on achieving stability in South Sudan and stressed that Egypt will continue supporting all conflict resolution efforts, in coordination with its regional and international partners.
Civil war broke out in South Sudan in December 2013 due to conflict between Kiir and Machar.
By August 2018, a final cease-fire and power-sharing agreement, followed by a peace agreement to end the civil war called the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of the Conflict in South Sudan, was signed by the government, the opposition party, and other rebel factions, following peace negotiations mediated by Uganda and Sudan.
It is estimated that almost 400,000 people lost their lives during the war.
