Uganda has deployed special forces to South Sudan’s capital, Juba, amid escalating tensions between South Sudanese President Salva Kiir and his First Vice President, Riek Machar.
The deployment aims to secure the city as fears mount that the fragile peace deal brokered in 2018 between Kiir and Machar could unravel, potentially plunging the young nation back into conflict.
The move follows a series of alarming developments in South Sudan, including the arrest last week of two ministers and several senior military officials, all allies of Machar by Kiir’s security forces.
These detentions, coupled with deadly clashes in the northern town of Nasir between government troops and the White Army militia have heightened concerns about the stability of the power sharing agreement that ended a brutal five-year civil war in 2018.
General Kainerugaba emphasized Uganda’s unwavering support for Kiir, declaring that any move against him is a declaration of war against Uganda.
He added that the Ugandan People’s Defence Force (UPDF) would protect South Sudan like it was our own, signaling a strong regional stake in preventing a return to chaos.
Uganda has a history of military involvement in South Sudan, having previously deployed troops in 2013 and 2016 to bolster Kiir’s forces during earlier outbreaks of violence.