Description: Former Burundian President Domitien Ndayizeye and Kenyan Judge Effie Owuor, arrived in Juba and joined former Kenyan Prime Minister Raila Odinga in an attempt to negotiate peace amid rising concerns of conflict reigniting. The security situation in the country exacerbated after armed fighting between the White Army Militia and South Sudanese military which resulted in the arrest of the Vice – President Riek Machar. Conflict tensions between President Salva Kiir and Machar started to escalate in the past two months as Machar was accused of organizing a coup in order to power grab the presidency from Kiir. The mediators would aim to defuse the situation which has been additionally inflated by the conflict in neighboring Sudan between RSF forces and the country’s military.
Impact: The brewing political tensions resulted in armed clashes which could lead to a renewed security and humanitarian crisis in the country and impact the already destabilized African continent. Confrontations between the White Army Militia and South Sudanese army escalated in armed fighting in the northern Upper Nile State which elevated the risk of plunging the country into another prolonged civil war. The relatively early presence of peace mediators indicate potential de-escalation, however, Machar’s imprisonment further exemplifies a negative outcome. Factors such as the unilateral US withdrawal from global affairs the growing Russian and Chinese soft and hard power presence in Africa and the civil war in Sudan could lead to further political and armed confrontations despite growing peace efforts.