Chinese official to visit Africa for South Sudan talks

Zhong Jianhua, the Chinese government's Special Representative on African Affairs, will visit Ethiopia, Uganda and Kenya from Wednesday to discuss the situation in South Sudan, a Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson said on Wednesday.

Zhong will meet with "relevant parties" and discuss how to continue to support the mediation efforts of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, an eight-nation East African bloc, and urge the conflicting parties in South Sudan to implement the peace agreement, Lu Kang said.

Recently, China and other mediators have been in close contact to explore ways for the conflicting parties in South Sudan to end the fighting and restart dialogue, according to Lu.

"China has always been an active participant and staunch promoter of the peace process in South Sudan," Lu said.

He said the situation in South Sudan is complicated, calling for the international community to focus on it and help put a stop to the violence there.

(APD)