Vietnam highlights significance of UN security force’s presence in Abyei

Abyei, located in the border between Sudan and South Sudan, has seen conflicts seen 2011. (Photo: UN)

Hanoi (VNA) – Vietnam has underlined thesignificance of the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA)’s continuouspresence in Abyei to maintain stability in the area and support the JointBorder Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM).

Addressing the United Nations Security Council (UNSC)'s discussionon Abyei on October 13, Deputy Permanent Representative of Vietnam to theUnited Nations Ambassador Pham Hai Anh expressed concern about difficulties facing UNISFAcurrently.

He stressed the needto ensure security and safety for UN staff, and called on the governments ofrelevant states to abide by commitments stated in the Status of ForcesAgreement (SOFA) with UNISFA and create favourable conditions forthe force to fully perform its tasks.

The Vietnamese representative lauded efforts by UNISFA, the UN Secretariatand the Special Envoy of the UN Secretary-General for the Horn of Africa inpromoting dialogue with relevant parties to deal with challenges facing UNISFA.

Deputy Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations Ambassador Pham Hai Anh. (Photo: VNA)

Sudan and South Sudan signed an agreement on the disputedAbyei region on June 20, 2011 under which they pledged to withdraw troops fromthe demilitarised zone. However, they haven’t obtained much substantive progressin the implementation of the agreement.

UNISFA, set up on June 27, 2011 under UNSC Resolution 1990, was tasked with protectingcivilians and promoting the demilitarisation in Abyei. It was supplemented with theduty of supporting the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism(JBVMM) in this region under Resolution 2024 on December 14, 2011./.

VNA