Lately, Norway, the United Kingdom and the United States, commonly known as "Troika" in Sudan and South Sudan in the context of peace, have been talking...and talking...and talking...a lot.
This has not always been the case. They have been, since the mid-1990s during the North-South war in Sudan, action-oriented
Today, with embassies in Juba, all they do is issue ineffective press releases or statements. That is all. Necessarily diplomatic, yes. But what does that do for South Sudanese? Nothing.
For any change to materialize in South Sudan, the incumbent leadership must be subjected to something that would make it petrified. So far, nothing of the kind has been availed. Virtually nothing.
Targeted sanctions have not worked. Arms embargo has not worked. External pressure has not work.
On July 3, 2026, Mr. Michael Adler, the US ambassador to Juba said words that continue to make me scratch my head. They make me scratch my head not because they are untrue. No. They make me shake my head because they have become platitudes.
Here Ambassador Adler:
"I am speaking on behalf of the United States as well as of our Troika partners, Norway and the United Kingdom. Peace is our priority in South Sudan. Peace requires a return to genuine interparty dialogue. It is farcical to say that interparty dialogue is occurring, when First Vice President Machar, the head of the second largest party to the 2018 peace agreement, is under house arrest and on trial. Let us be clear, the 2018 agreement is imperfect. That has been repeatedly demonstrated since its signing, including by the clear signs of lack of political will by its signatories to implement it.However, the agreement remains the basis for the legitimacy of the transitional government. Any changes must be made through dialogue involving all parties to the agreement. As we have noted, dialogue cannot be said to be authentically taking place without inclusion of all parties to the agreement, including Riek Machar."
It is difficult to see how a leadership that is not afraid of any accountability will ever change within this context. Even worse, South Sudanese leaders only prioritize their financial interest rather than the interest of the people of South Sudan.
Civil servants are not paid even when the president and his daughter donate funds to select activities and group. Adut Salva, for instance, runs a charity organization, Adut Salva Kiir (ASK) foundation whose source of funds has not been made public.
Corruption, which has been a systemic and structural "cancer" in South Sudan since 2005 according to President Kiir, continues to hamper development.
On July 9th, 2011, President Kiir made a lofty promise:
"Official corruption has been one of our major challenges during the interim period. In order to develop our country, and deliver on the important goals of our National Development Plan, it is critical that we fight corruption with dedication, rigour and commitment. As President I pledge to you to do all you can to remove this cancer. We will work closely with our development partners as we move forward."
A year later, on July 9, 2012, the president made similar promises about fighting corruption. He assured South Sudanese and the international community that "this government will never tolerate corruption."
These have consistently been empty promises. Kiir's government continues to tolerate corruption.
At times the president speaks as if someone else is the president.
In their 2024 Corruption Perception Index, Transparency International placed South Sudan at 181 out of the 182 countries it studied. In fact, South Sudan has a score of 9 out of the possible 100, an increase of 1 from the previous year.
In terms of world press freedom index, South Sudan is ranked at 119 out of the 180 countries studied by Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in 2026. This is a decline from 109 in 2025.
According to RSF:
"Most of South Sudan’s political leaders apply a great deal of pressure to impose their agenda on the media. National TV and radio suffer greatly from a lack of independence. If their programmes don’t toe the government line, they are threatened and sanctioned and their journalists are exposed to the possibility of arrest. Media shutdowns nonetheless became less frequent after the Media Authority (MA), the regulatory body, was established in 2017. Officials from the National Security Service (NSS) often raid news media or printing plants in order to censor specific content."
Since South Sudanese leaders have spent more than two decades without availing the promises of liberation to the people, it is time for the international community to raise the pressure temperature.
Treating Juba with kids' gloves has made South Sudan a failed state. Consistently releasing ineffective press releases or warning South Sudanese leaders to implement the agreement has become virtually useless.
Unless the Troika only relishes the issuance of ineffective press releases and statements as ends in themselves, then it is time for them to up their game.
That "Any changes must be made through dialogue involving all parties to the agreement" is something Troika countries in the RJMEC have consistently stressed. But Juba isn't listening. Troika keeps issuing statements.
Tone deaf!
South Sudanese have suffered under various regimes of power and oppression. There is no reason reason they should continue to suffer.
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Kuir ë Garang (PhD) is the editor of the TPR.
