UNITED NATIONS, April 22 (UPI) -- Parties to a comprehensive peace agreement need to find solutions to outstanding issues before South Sudan's independence in July, the United Nations said.
A comprehensive peace agreement that ended a bloody civil war in Sudan gave the south the right to vote to form an independent state. Voters in January overwhelmingly backed the measure though issues like revenue sharing and border demarcation remain unresolved.
The U.N. Security Council called on all parties to the 2005 peace agreement to come together to address outstanding issues before South Sudan becomes an independent nation in July.
"Noting that the conclusion of the CPA interim period on July 9 is soon approaching, the council urges the parties, meeting at the highest level, as necessary, to reach agreement on outstanding CPA issues and post-CPA arrangements," the Security Council said in a presidential statement.
Voters in parts of the country didn't vote in the January referendum and conflict has erupted between rival groups in southern Sudan and nomadic peoples along de facto border regions.
"The council underlines the need for the CPA parties to promote calm, including by providing immediate and ongoing reassurance to people of all nationalities in Sudan, including southerners in the north and northerners in the south, that their rights, safety and property will be respected," the statement read.
