Statement by Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan, on the Announcement of the Final Result of the Southern Sudan Referendum

February 8, 2011
Japanese

On Monday, February 7, the South Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC) announced the final result of the Southern Sudan referendum, in which the overwhelming majority voted for the secession of Southern Sudan. Japan sincerely welcomes the fact that the referendum was held in a peaceful manner and that major progress was seen in the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA).
In anticipation of the expiry of the CPA due to be implemented in July of this year, the Northern and Southern Sudan peace process is at a crucial stage. Japan strongly expects that the parties involved in both Northern and Southern Sudan will accept the results of the referendum and smoothly advance negotiations on various issues toward the envisaged secession and independence of Southern Sudan. To this end, Japan will proactively support the efforts of both sides.

(*This is a provisional translation. The above date denotes the date of the issue of the original press release in Japanese.)

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