South Sudan’s collapsing peace sparks fears of regional turmoil, UN warns

Renewed violence in South Sudan is threatening to plunge the country — and its neighbors — into deeper instability,UN officials warned this week.

Assistant Secretary-General for Africa,Martha Pobee,told the UN Security Council that South Sudan’s fragile peace process is unraveling,with escalating clashes between government forces and rival militias eroding the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement. The crisis,she said,risks shifting the conflict from local communal violence to a broader,ethnically-driven regional conflict. “The people of South Sudan are counting on us,” Pobee urged,as humanitarian conditions worsen and political will dwindles.

Since March,tensions between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar have intensified,culminating in Machar’s house arrest on 26 March and the effective breakdown of their power-sharing deal. Murithi Mutiga of the International Crisis Group (ICG) warned that the agreement “was effectively terminated” with Machar’s detainment. “Resolving Riek Machar’s situation is delicate but critical,” he said in his briefing to the UN Security Council. “Ideally,President Kiir should be encouraged to allow Machar to return to his previous role as First Vice President in line with the 2018 peace agreement.”

The humanitarian toll is staggering: 7.7 million people face food insecurity,9.3 million require aid,and 83,000 are nearing “catastrophic conditions”. Meanwhile,1.2 million refugees fleeing Sudan’s civil war have crossed into South Sudan,straining already-limited resources. Oil revenue losses,aid access challenges,and underfunded relief efforts compound the crisis. With elections slated for December 2026,the UN urged all parties to recommit to peace. “Declarations of commitment are not enough,” Pobee said. Without credible progress,the risk of full-scale conflict looms large.