The United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) has declined a written request by East African IGAD peace mediators to transport commanders of the SPLM-IO faction to a consultative conference at Pagak in Upper Nile State. 

The peacekeeping mission announced this in response to media reports that it had asked the South Sudanese government for permission to carry out the task.

South Sudan’s president speaking on Monday said that last week he refused a request in this regard. But on Wednesday an official in the foreign ministry announced the reversal of this decision saying the government would not object to the UN or IGAD transporting commanders to Pagak.

Late on Thursday, however, UNMISS announced that it had decided not to help IGAD to transport SPLM-IO commanders to the conference.

“UNMISS received a written request dated 17 November 2014 from the Office of the Inter-governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) Special Envoys for South Sudan to provide air transportation to SPLM/A-IO delegates based in Unity, Upper Nile and Jonglei states who are planning to attend this conference on the IGAD-sponsored peace talks in Ethiopia,” reads the UN statement.

“The Mission declined the IGAD request in writing on 19 November, citing security and practical reasons,” it added.

Referring to a letter of no-objection sent by the foreign ministry to IGAD, the UN mission also disclosed that the letter “did not refer to UNMISS as a facilitating organization.”

According to the UNMISS statement, “the UNMISS decision that it is not in a position to provide air transportation for the delegates remains unchanged.”

The conference at Pagak is meant to give the SPLM-IO chairman Riek Machar and other members of the faction’s negotiating team an opportunity to brief their field commanders on the status of peace talks with the rival SPLM-Juba faction.

Machar’s faction is considering whether to accept a power-sharing deal in which he would become prime minister of the country.

One of the commanders of the SPLM-IO faction, Peter Gadet, has been accused by some observers of responsibility for shooting down a helicopter belonging to UNMISS last August.

Gadet is SPLM-IO’s overall commander in Unity State.