‘Peace agreement did not collapse,’ SSPDF Chief says

South Sudan’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Santino Deng Wol, said the country’s 2018 peace agreement remains in force despite recent tensions and clashes involving government and opposition forces, urging troops in Jonglei State to uphold the ceasefire and refrain from attacking opposition fighters.

Speaking during a visit to a military base in Ayod County, Jonglei State, Wol told soldiers of the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) that the peace deal had not collapsed and that dialogue remained the only path to resolving political disputes.

“We say the agreement did not collapse; we are still in the agreement,” Wol said. “Fighting is not a solution, dialogue comes first.”

His remarks come amid growing concerns over renewed violence and political tensions that have raised fears about the future of the fragile peace agreement signed in 2018 between President Salva Kiir and the opposition led by First Vice President Riek Machar, who remains under detention in Juba.

Wol said the military remained committed to implementing the agreement, including the long-delayed unification of forces under the pact’s security arrangements.

“The agreement the government signed, we as the army will support because we are the force that protects the people of South Sudan,” he said.

The army chief instructed SSPDF troops in Jonglei not to attack forces of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army-In Opposition (SPLA-IO), saying military action should only be taken in self-defence while the ceasefire remains in effect.

“Do not attack the SPLA-IO forces in their positions because we are in peace; fight only in self-defence,” Wol said.

He also warned that personnel who fail to participate in the second phase of unified forces training would be required to disarm and return to civilian life or risk being treated as criminals.

South Sudan’s 2018 peace agreement ended a five-year civil war that killed hundreds of thousands of people. A key provision of the deal calls for the integration of rival armed groups into a unified national army, a process that has faced repeated delays.