South Sudan will never betray Ethiopian government, Machar tells Ethiopian envoy

JUBA – South Sudan, the world’s youngest country, will never betray the people and government of Ethiopia, main armed opposition leader and First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny told Ethiopian Ambassador in Juba, Nebil Mehdi, who paid him a courtesy call in his office.

According to a statement by the Ethiopian ministry of foreign affairs, Mehdi visited Machar to brief him on the ongoing conflict which begun following the attack by Tigray People’s Liberation Front (TPLF) in November last year on a federal army base in northern part of the country.

“South Sudan’s First Vice President H.E. Riek Machar (PhD) met with Ethiopia’s Ambassador in South Sudan, H.E. Ambassador Nebil Mehdi and exchanged views of common interest,” the ministry of foreign affairs in Addis Ababa said in a statement seen by Sudans Post.

“During the meeting, the First Vice President recalled the two Nations’ long-standing historical relations and mentioned how grateful the people of South Sudan are for the strong commitment of consecutive governments in Ethiopia,” the statement said.

The South Sudanese leader also “underscored South Sudan’s commitment for peace in Ethiopia and said nothing harmful comes from South Sudan now and in the future,” according to the statement.

For his part, Amb. Mehdi said he “briefed the First Vice President about the current developments in Ethiopia, among others; the rapid changes in the battlefields; the humanitarian aid delivery effort; the heinous atrocities that are being committed by the TPLF terrorist force and the huge humanitarian catastrophe that these forces are leaving behind.”

He also “highlighted the hypocritical and unbalanced reports of some western media agencies which aimed at nothing but tarnishing the image of the country and its leadership.”