The peace negotiation between the Sudanese government and Sudan People’s Liberation Army North (SPLA-N) on Blue Nile and South Kordofan States will resume on 9 December, the African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP) has announced.

Last week, Sudan announced its readiness to resume negotiations in Ehiopia during the upcoming days with the SPLA-N rebels over Blue Nile and South Kordofan under the auspices of the AUHIP.

The SPLA-N negotiating team has disclosed that it received a notification letter from the African mediator Thabo Mbeki on the possibility of resuming talks on the two areas on 12 December.

The new round of talks coincides with the meetings of the Joint Political and Security Mechanism (JPSM) between Sudan and South Sudan on their outstanding issues on 15 and 16 December.

The SPLA-N team will be headed by its leader, General Malik Agar. The agenda of the negotiations will be guided by the framework agreement between the government and the SPLM-North, better known as the Nafie Agar agreement, as well as the UN Security Council, according to Agar.

File photo: AUHIP Chairman Thabo Mbeki (World Economic Forum)

Related: Khartoum announces African mediators’ call for talks with SPLM-N (26 November 2013)