KAMPALA .
Ugandan President Museveni on Thursday arrived in South Sudan capital, Juba, for a working visit.
He was received upon arrival at Juba International Airport by his host, President Salva Kiir Mayardit, the President of the Republic of South Sudan.
Among those at the airport to receive President Museveni were South Sudan’s Minister of Presidential Affairs, Chol Mawut Ajongo; the Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Ramadan Muhammed Abdalla; the Minister of Defense and Veteran Affairs, Chol Thon Balok; and other senior government officials.
On the Ugandan side, Mr Museveni was welcomed by the Minister of Defense and Veteran Affairs, Jacob Oboth Oboth; Senior Presidential Advisor on Defence and Security Gen. Proscovia Nalweyiso; Ugandan Ambassador to the Republic of South Sudan Brig. Gen. Ronnie Balya; and others.
President Museveni inspected a guard of honor upon his arrival ahead of the expected meeting with President Salva Kiir and other stakeholders for bilateral talks between the two nations.
Museveni’s visit comes amid rising tensions in African’s youngest nation with President Salva Kiir no long see eye to eye with his First vice President Dr Riek Machar .
The African Union has already sent a mediation team which arrived in South Sudan’s capital Juba on Wednesday for talks aimed at averting a new civil war after Dr Machar was placed under house arrest last week.
Kiir’s government has accused Dr Machar, a longtime rival who led rebel forces during a 2013-18 war that killed hundreds of thousands, of trying stir up a new rebellion.
Dr Machar’s detention last Wednesday followed weeks of fighting in the northern Upper Nile state between the military and the White Army militia .Dr Machar’s forces were allied with the White Army during the civil war ,but deny any current links.
The AU delegation’s flight arrived at Juba’s airport on Wednesday afternoon with a “Council of the Wise” which included former Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye and former Kenyan judge Effie Owuor.
Machar’s SPLM-IO party said in a statement that it “warmly welcomes the arrival of the Council of Wise as part of ongoing efforts to de-escalate tensions and support the peace process”.
The AU’s Peace and Security Council called in a statement on Tuesday for Machar’s “immediate and unconditional release”, saying recent developments threaten the 2018 peace deal that ended the war.
Kenya’s former Prime Minister Raila Odinga arrived in Juba on Monday on behalf of an East African regional body to mediate between the rival camps. Odinga met with Kiir but said he was not allowed to see Machar.
Police observers say Kiir, 73, appears to be attempting to shore up his position amid discontent within his own political camp and that the war in neighbouring Sudan has worsened security conditions by leading to an influx of weapons.
The 2013-18 war was contested largely along ethnic lines, with fighters from the Dinka, the country’s largest group, lining up behind Kiir, and those from the Nuer, the second-largest group, supporting Dr Machar.