Well casings lined up beneath the Heglig drilling rig (file photo). (Photo Courtesy UNEP)
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Washington, DC — Excerpt from the United States Department of State daily press briefing:
QUESTION: On Sudan, I understand you are - are you concerned
about the situation there, and are you're talking to the two parties to
avoid a new war?
MS. NULAND: Well, we're very concerned and we will likely have
another statement later today which strongly condemns the military
offensive incursion into Southern Kordofan state, Sudan by the SPLA
today, and also that again condemns the ongoing aerial bombardment of
civilian areas by the Sudanese Armed Forces. We're calling for a
cessation of all hostilities by all sides.
Our envoy, Princeton Lyman, has been in touch today with the UN
special envoy and the African Union and is also seeking to be in contact
with both parties again today. The UN Security Council, I think you
know, is being briefed or was briefed this morning on the operations of
the UN Interim Security Force in Abyei, discussing peacekeeping
operations, et cetera. And as presidency of the UN Security Council this
month, we are intent on keeping Sudan very much in - and South Sudan
very much in focus.
QUESTION: You, in fact, are coming out and strongly condemning the SPLA today --
MS. NULAND: Yeah.
QUESTION: -- which is something unusual.
MS. NULAND: Yeah.
QUESTION: Was it a mistake for the United States to be so
supportive of the SPLA and of South Sudan for so many years, if they
can't be trusted to keep an agreement?
MS. NULAND: Well, I think our concern all along has been that the
Comprehensive Peace Agreement that both sides signed up to has not been
implemented. And after independence, there were more things that were
supposed to happen. And we've made clear that we have concerns about
violence along the border region. We have been even-handed; when we see
violent behavior by either side, we have called it out. So that's what
we're doing again today.
Look, there are unresolved conflicts that can only be resolved
through dialogue. There are borders that need to be set. There are
resources that have to be shared. There are humanitarian reasons for
these two states to work together and create a peaceful neighborhood.
But it wasn't peaceful before independence either, so --
QUESTION: No, but do you - are there people who are now a bit
concerned or perhaps saying - giving - having second thoughts about
whether you should have been so active in supporting the Southern
Sudanese?
MS. NULAND: I think the concern is that there has been violence
rather than dialogue to settle these issues. And when violence has
happened from the North, it's been met by a violent response, and both
sides need to come to the table rather than use weapons on these
problems.
Yeah. Please, Scott.
QUESTION: On that, when last we heard from Ambassador Lyman
when he had that humanitarian conference call, he was saying that the
United States was pushing Khartoum to open these humanitarian corridors.
One of the reasons they say that they are not doing that is because of
these SPLA attacks in Heglig. So do you think that the actions by the
government in Juba are complicating Khartoum's acceptance of opening
humanitarian corridors?
MS. NULAND: Well, let's start with Khartoum's week after week of
aerial bombardment of the region. So they're - they haven't been angels
either in this situation. So this is something that we are calling out
here today that we've got problems with both sides, and we're calling
for restraint and cessation of violence by all sides.
QUESTION: So it's a lie? There are no angels in Sudan?
QUESTION: Can we go back to Syria?
MS. NULAND: Yes.
(The briefing was concluded at 1:09 p.m.)
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