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South Sudan's minister of information has confirmed Uganda People’s Defence Force's presence in the capital Juba noting that the country has a long-standing pact with Uganda.
Minister Micheal Makuei explained that Uganda and South Sudan's military pact dates back to joint operations against the Lord’s Resistance Army rebels, a Ugandan rebel group that was based in South Sudan.
“This agreement has been in place for many years. It started with operations against the LRA and continued with the establishment of a U.S military base in Yambio,” he explained.
Makuei noted that the pact has never been nullified and the two nations’ forces are on usual mutual cooperation which is not a new development.
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“The UPDF stationed here in Juba are support and technical units. They are here to assist their brothers and sisters in the South Sudan Defence People’s Forces, not to engage in new or separate operations. Their role is purely supportive,” he added.
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According to UPDF CDF Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba, the dubbed Operation Mlinzi wa Kimya is an effort to support the government of South Sudan following rising tensions between President Salva Kiir and senior officers loyal to Riek Machar in a looming battle for power.
"We the UPDF (Ugandan military) only recognise one President of South Sudan, H.E. Salva Kiir... Any move against him is a declaration of war against Uganda," he posted on X.
Tensions have been mounting in South Sudan after the government detained two ministers and several senior military officers allied with Riek Machar. One minister has since been released.
Ugandan troops were first deployed in South Sudan in 2013 after the outbreak of civil war triggered by the power struggle between Kiir and Machar.
The arrests in Juba, coupled with deadly clashes around the northern town of Nasir, are threatening the 2018 peace deal that ended a five-year civil war between President Salva Kiir and Machar’s forces, a conflict that claimed nearly 400,000 lives.