South Sudan said Thursday it had reached an agreement with warring parties for it to secure a key oil field in Sudan near the border after the site was seized by paramilitaries.
Kordofan, where the Heglig oil field lies, has become the epicentre of the Sudanese civil war after the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) took control of the entire Darfur region in the west of the country in October.
The RSF, which has been locked in conflict with the regular army since April 2023, said on Monday it had taken control of the strategic area “after the Sudanese army fled”. South Sudan later said the troops had surrendered to them.
The paramilitaries hailed the oil field’s capture as “a turning point for the liberation of the entire country, given its economic importance”.
Information Minister Ateny Wek Ateny told a press conference on Thursday that “a tripartite agreement has been reached” between South Sudan’s army, the Sudanese army and the RSF.
It grants the South Sudanese “the primary security responsibility over the Heglig Oil field, also known as Panthou, amid rising tension”.
The capture of Heglig, described by a former Sudanese minister as a “disaster”, was also a blow to South Sudan, which held onto most of Sudan’s fossil fuel deposits after seceding from it in 2011.
The site houses the main processing facility for South Sudanese oil destined for export.
Ateny said that production was “still ongoing”, adding there were no reports of “major damage that could have halted the production”.
The information minister said the situation had been resolved through leader Salva Kiir, who had called his counterparts to urge them to cease fighting around the oil field, as “both parties may have the power to destroy the oil field, but they do not have the power to stop the oil field if it inflames”.
He also confirmed that 1,650 non-commissioned officers and 60 officers who surrendered to South Sudan’s army earlier this week were safe, adding “they are now being arranged to be taken back to their country”.
South Sudanese general Paul Nang Majok told local broadcaster SSBC the deal was vital to avoid the destruction of the oilfield.
He also said Sudanese forces would withdraw, leaving South Sudan troops in charge, although “the RSF will also be outside the area too”.
Despite its oil, the world’s youngest country has suffered instability and high poverty rates for years.
South Sudan gained independence in 2011 but soon after suffered five years of devastating civil war, leaving more than two million displaced, and there are fears of renewed conflict this year as a peace agreement unravels.
Meanwhile, Sudan’s ongoing conflict has also seen South Sudan host hundreds of thousands of refugees from the war.
Neither the RSF nor the Sudanese military were immediately available for comment.
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© Agence France-Presse
