The preliminary signing of the prospective peace agreement between the Central African Republic (CAR) government and armed groups is planned for Tuesday, and the final signing procedures are expected to take place Wednesday in the country's capital of Bangui, Andrei Kemarsky, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of Africa, told Sputnik Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 04th February, 2019) The preliminary signing of the prospective peace agreement between the Central African Republic (CAR) government and armed groups is planned for Tuesday, and the final signing procedures are expected to take place Wednesday in the country's capital of Bangui, Andrei Kemarsky, the director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of Africa, told Sputnik Monday.
On Saturday, Adolphe Nahayo, the Economic Community of Central African States' (ECCAS) ambassador to CAR, told Sputnik, following the conclusion of talks between the car government and armed groups, that the parties had agreed to sign a peace agreement on Monday or Tuesday. According to Nahayo, it was also decided to set up as soon as possible a follow-up committee on the implementation of the peace deal.
"The agreement was expected to be initiated yesterday, but seems like it was not. The new initiating date is set for tomorrow," the diplomat said, adding that if the initiating went well, the final signing was expected to take place on Wednesday.
�The CAR has been suffering from sectarian clashes between the Muslims and the Christians since the 2013 coup, when the Muslim Seleka rebels seized control of the nation, overthrowing then-President Francois Bozize and provoking a backlash from the Christian Anti-Balaka militia. On January 24, the CAR government for the first time engaged in direct talks with the country's opposition groups, with the negotiations having been brokered by the African Union.
Nahayo also revealed in his comments to Sputnik that apart from the decision to sign a peace agreement, the parties to the talks had also agreed to establish a mixed border security mechanism between the CAR government, the UN troops and representatives of the armed groups. It was also decided to set up a special commission that would be tasked with accounting all the crimes committed in the country since 2013.
