Encouraging talks in progress top priority for South Sudan issue: Chinese envoy

On solving the issue of South Sudan, the highest priority is to encourage "in a constructive way" negotiations in progress between the country's major parties so that they would reach an agreement at an early date and actually implement the agreement, said a Chinese envoy here on Friday.

Liu Jieyi, permanent representative to the UN for China, which serves the presidency of the Security Council for the month of February, made the remarks at an end-of-presidency briefing when answering questions raised on South Sudan.

Liu said that either the Security Council or the international community should be guided by the thinking of what is the best for South Sudan and respond to the situation in a "truly helpful" manner since the two parties, namely the government and the opposition, are negotiating at this right moment.

A draft resolution has been presented to the Security Council earlier this week which provides for sanctions on individuals who would get in the way of the country's peace process.

"By nature, sanctions are a punitive thing to do...It intends to punish," he said. "But they are walking to the negotiation table; they are talking across the negotiating table. To apply a punitive measure now would send out what kind of message? Right message or wrong message?"

"I think we need to be guided by the thinking of what is the best for the country, what the two parties, the government and the opposition, are doing right now and what is the best role the council can play to make sure that the negotiations will bear fruit in a better environment rather than in a more complicated environment," he added.

The final session of South Sudan peace process led by the Intergovernmental Authority on Development kicked off on Monday in Ethiopia's capital Addis Ababa.

The IGAD has been mediating the South Sudan negotiations to end the conflict erupted in mid-December 2013 in the world's youngest nation.

Though the warring parties signed agreements through the mediation of the East African bloc, conflict has continued in South Sudan, claiming lives and displacing citizens of the country.

The peace process launched Monday is expected to make progress and usher in a new era of peace in South Sudan.