The Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini- Zuma, commends the governments of Sudan and South Sudan on the outcomes of the recently held ministerial ordinary meeting of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism (JPSM) between the two sides held on 5 June, in Khartoum, and co-chaired by their Ministers of Defense.

The Chairperson notes, with great satisfaction, that the Parties have agreed on far reaching measures on their common border relating to the complete redeployment of their respective forces from the area of the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ) and the reactivation of the various JPSM mechanisms, especially the Joint Border Verification and Monitoring Mechanism (JBVMM), the Border Ad Hoc Committee and the Technical Border Corridors Committee.

The Chairperson is encouraged by the outcomes of the meeting between the two neighboring states and their commitment to fully implement the Security Arrangements, signed in Addis Ababa, on 27 September 2012. In this regard, she urges the two governments to implement the agreed decisions in accordance with the stated timeframes, to create the necessary conditions for the existence of two viable states at peace with each other, for the good of their peoples.

The Chairperson reiterates the full support and cooperation of the AU Commission, through the AU High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP) and the AU Border Programme, for the timely implementation of all the decisions of the JPSM meeting.