U.S. Reaffirms Position on South Sudan Elections, Says Poll Timing Is Sovereign Decision

Credit: Shondaland

The United States has reaffirmed that decisions on the timing and scope of South Sudan’s elections are sovereign matters for South Sudanese authorities, while urging the country’s leaders to ensure peaceful conditions and finance the polls with public resources.

In a statement issued Monday by the U.S. Embassy in Juba, the United States said it does not seek to impose a political or ideological model on South Sudan.

“We recognize that the timing and scope of South Sudanese elections are sovereign decisions for South Sudanese to make,” the embassy said.

The statement comes after recent comments by officials in South Sudan’s transitional government concerning U.S. policy toward the country’s elections.

The United States said that if South Sudan proceeds with elections, it expects the country’s leaders to create peaceful conditions for the polls and fund them using South Sudan’s own public resources.

The embassy said its position is consistent with U.S. priorities for South Sudan, which were reaffirmed by the State Department in February.

Those priorities include supporting peace and ending the misuse of public revenue, which the United States said should instead be allocated to appropriate public purposes.

The statement did not endorse or oppose the planned elections but emphasized that decisions about whether, when and how the elections are conducted rest with South Sudan.