This comes after Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, on Tuesday announced that they have deployed a Special Forces to South Sudan’s capital Juba
By Anak Dut
The Minister of Information and Government Spokesperson, Michael Makuei Lueth has denied the presence of the Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF) in Juba.
“There are no Ugandan forces in Juba. Secondly, South Sudan is peaceful and stable,” Makuei told The City Review in an exclusive interview.
This comes after Uganda’s Chief of Defence Forces, Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba, on Tuesday announced that they have deployed a Special Forces to South Sudan’s capital Juba.
Gen. Muhoozi, who is known for his provocative posts on social media, said that the Special Forces unit entered Juba to secure it.
“As of 2 days ago, our Special Forces units entered Juba to secure it,” he posted on his X account.
“We the UPDF, only recognize only one president of South Sudan, H.E Salva Kiir, he is our ‘Afande’ even in UPDF, and he is the younger brother to Mzee. Any move against him is a declaration of war against Uganda, all those who commit that crime will learn what it means,” he stated in the second post.
Gen Muhoozi continued: “We shall protect the entire territory of South Sudan like it was our own. That is the will of the commander–in–chief.”
However, Muhoozi did not disclose whether the president requested the deployment or how long the troops would be in the country.
In 2013, Uganda had deployed its troops to South Sudan after the war broke out, which the Uganda’s Foreign Ministry said that the UPDF were to protect the airport and ensure safe evacuation of the Ugandan nationals from Juba.
Meanwhile, Ugandan army spokesman Felix Kulayigye confirmed to AFP that troops had been deployed in the capital “to protect the government.”
“We had instructions to deploy and we deployed the troops there,” he told AFP.
“The forces were deployed in Juba two days ago,” he added to AFP.
By press time, attempts to obtain comment from SSPDF spokesperson, Major Gen. Lul Ruai were unsuccessful as he had not responded to the publication’s calls.
A power-sharing agreement between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar that ended the conflict in 2018, has been threatened by the recent clashes in Upper Nile State.
On Monday during a press conference in Juba, the South Sudan People’s Defence Forces (SSPDF) accused Machar’s forces of fomenting unrest in Nasir County of Upper Nile, claims that the First Vice President, in a statement released by his press secretary, Puok Both Baluang, denied, terming as ‘baseless accusations, which are a complete misrepresentation of the facts.’
The alarming unrest has sparked international concern, with the United Nations Commission on Human Rights in South Sudan warning the country was seeing an “alarming regression” that threatened to undo years of progress.
“We had instructions to deploy and we deployed the troops there. The forces were deployed in Juba two days ago,” Ugandan army spokesman Felix Kulayigye to AFP.