South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Simon Deng
As part of its broader diplomatic efforts, South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation has announced moves to reset and enhance bilateral relations with several countries, including the United States, Israel, Australia, Algeria, Ghana, Brazil, Austria, the Netherlands, Norway, Germany, and Djibouti.
Apuk Ayuel Mayen, the Director of Media and spokesperson for the Ministry, said that the ministry’s engagement with Israel focuses on cooperation and partnership in agriculture.
“From July to August, the Minister of Foreign Affairs will travel to Israel for high-level discussions on cooperation and multilateral partnerships in agriculture, infrastructural development, energy, health, minerals, and capacity building,” said Mayen during the weekly media briefing aimed at raising public awareness of South Sudan’s foreign policy.
Mayen disclosed that the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ambassador Monday Semaya K. Kumba, visited Washington DC and held meetings with members of Congress, senior officials from the State Department, the International Monetary Fund, and the World Bank, focusing on governance and development cooperation.
Mayen added that South Sudan has engaged with Turkey, Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Turkmenistan, Qatar, and Egypt, as well as with neighbouring countries including Ethiopia, Uganda, Kenya, the Central African Republic, and Sudan, with a focus on advancing trade, investment, peace, security, and regional cooperation.
“This was followed by a reciprocal visit to South Sudan by Israel’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sharren Haskel, and the signing of a memorandum of understanding on bilateral cooperation between the two ministries,” she said.
Apuk noted that President Salva Kiir Mayardit has received high-level delegations from key regional and international partners, underscoring South Sudan’s growing international diplomatic presence and its active role in regional and continental affairs.
“Through this engagement, His Excellency the President continues to advance South Sudan’s foreign policy priorities, centred on peace, economic transformation, regional integration, and mutual respect among nations,” said Mayen.
Mayen revealed that recent bilateral engagements include visits from Malik Agar, the Deputy Chairman of the Sudan Sovereign Council, Moussa Faki Mahamat, the Chairperson of the African Union Commission, and Workneh Gebeheyu, the Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), among others.
Philip Jada Natana, the Director General of Bilateral Relations at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, stated that the government has signed a memorandum of understanding with Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
“The Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Israel was here, and as part of the MOU, there has never been any discussion regarding the resettlement of Palestinians in South Sudan. The MOU focuses on capacity building and cooperation in terms of investment and mineral exploitation,” said Natana.
