UN "stands ready" for technical rollover of UNMIS for south Sudan: peacekeeping chief

Alain Le Roy, UN under- secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, on Tuesday said that the United Nations "stands ready" to deploy a technical rollover of the United Nations Mission in Sudan (UNMIS) for south Sudan.

Earlier on Tuesday, the government of Sudan notified UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon that it decided that the mission's mandate should not be continued beyond July 9, 2011. Meanwhile, the government of southern Sudan has "expressed its willingness to discuss a technical rollover of UNMIS, in a meeting with the secretary-general this morning," Le Roy said in his briefing to the UN Security Council.

"In light of the government of Sudan's decision not to consent to a technical roll over of UNMIS, the United Nations stands ready to deploy a mission in south Sudan as outlined in the secretary- general's report," Le Roy said.

In the meantime, Le Roy said it is "imperative that both parties respect the terms of the Kadugli agreements, refrain from taking offensive military action, and work in an open and flexible manner with the African Union (AU) High Level Panel toward finding a lasting solution for Abyei and all other pending issues," he said.

UNMIS was established in Sudan in accordance with the UN Security Council Resolution 1590, issued on March 24, 2005.

According to the resolution, UNMIS was tasked to monitor and verify the implementation of the Cease-fire Agreement and to investigate violations; to liaise with bilateral donors on the formation of Joint Integrated Units and to observe and monitor movement of armed groups and redeployment of forces in the areas of UNMIS deployment in accordance with the Cease-fire Agreement besides other tasks.

The UNMIS mandate was set to end by the end of the CPA on July 9, 2011, when south Sudan would officially be declared independent.

Source: Xinhua

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