UN asks Uganda to mediate in South Sudan

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has been asked by the United Nations to mediate in the conflict in South Sudan, according to spokesman Ofwono Opondo.Wednesday, President Museveni had talks with President Salva Kiir of South Sudan, and Henry Okello Oryem, the State Minister for International Affairs, Ugandan media was quoted as saying. Museveni will be “engaging” South Sudan at different levels. “The executive is engaging the South Sudan government. There is engagement at the highest level. The President (Museveni) is in talks with his colleague,” Oryem said to Daily Monitor. “The government of Uganda maintains a neutral stance to the conflict in South Sudan and calls for restraint from the parties involved. We also recommend dialogue and a negotiated resolution to the on-going conflict in the country,” the statement read in part. Fred Opolot, the Foreign Affairs ministry spokesperson, told the Daily Monitor that a group of officials from the ministry, Police, Internal Affairs and Trade had been scheduled to travel to the border and meet Ugandan traders stuck with goods. File photo: Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni (UN Photo/Mark Garten)