The President of the Republic said today that he refused to sign an AU proposed deal on oil with neighboring Sudan because it did not favor the interests of South Sudanese people.
The AU High Level Implementation Panel proposed that South Sudan should offer Khartoum four billion dollars plus 35,000 barrels per day for its refineries over the next five years.
President Salva Kiir Maryardit told journalists this morning in Juba that the deal proposed by the AU was inadequate because it failed to address the fundamental issues that divide South Sudan and Sudan.
He said it was difficult to sign a deal that would leave South Sudanese vulnerable, dependent and having to pay billions of dollars they owe to nobody.
President Kiir said South Sudan rejected the notion of mutual dependence as the only way to peace between the two countries adding that it has failed to stop continuous confrontation and human suffering.
He said the cycle of confrontation must end immediately and that his government was ready to negotiate issues in a transparent manner right away.
President Kiir added the AU deal was not acceptable because it would tie South Sudan to depend on Khartoum’s oil facilities and prevent the country from developing its own means of oil export.
The President explained that the deal would allow interference with national security issues and its sovereignty and that it would also lead to possible conflicts over land and oil.