SALVA KIIR MAYARDIT, President of South Sudan, emphasized the importance of reforming the Security Council, pointing out that since the founding of the United Nations the geopolitical realities have changed but the Council has remained the same.  Two permanent Council seats should be allotted to African countries as those nations are most affected by the entity’s decisions and resolutions.  The security situation in South Sudan is much improved, he said, reporting that refugees have been returning from neighbouring countries.  His Government is engaged in ongoing discussions with the United Nations Advance Mission in Sudan (UNAMIS) on handing over the protection of civilian sites to South Sudan’s police force.  However, the country faces challenges in that regard due to constraints imposed by the United Nations.  For example, the recently renewed arms embargo on South Sudan has far‑reaching implications, he said, wondering how his Government would arm itself when its ability to procure weapons is blocked.  South Sudan’s Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity had successfully negotiated a peace agreement with the Sudan Revolutionary Front (SRF), a coalition of rebel groups, to be signed in Juba in October.

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