Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what plans they have, if any, to revive peace agreements in South Sudan following President Salva Kiir Mayardit’s withdrawal from talks in Rome.

The UK has consistently urged all armed groups in South Sudan to bring an end to conflict and to abide by their commitments to the 2017 Cessation of Hostilities Agreement. This includes via longstanding support to, and engagement at, peace talks convened by the Community of Sant'Egidio in Rome. We are however deeply concerned by continued incidents of violence, including an attack in August on the Juba-Nimule highway, which triggered President Kiir's decision to withdraw from talks.

Our Ambassador in Juba publicly condemned this incident and we continue to engage with all sides to press them to meet their commitments and end such violence. We remain in contact with Sant'Egidio to support their efforts to revive talks as part of our wider efforts to drive progress on the implementation of the 2018 Peace Agreement.