From Voice of America

South Sudan former vice president Riek Machar has rejected President Salva Kiir’s proposal to name him as second vice president in a transitional unity government before next year’s vote as part of a negotiating deal to end the country’s seven month conflict.

In an interview with VOA, Machar who heads the rebellion against the government in Juba says his representatives at the talks want direct face-to-face peace talks with officials of the government at the negotiations in neighboring Ethiopia to resolve the conflict.

He says the involvement of other parties in the negotiations has often hampered efforts to reach an agreement to end the conflict.

“I believe that direct talks between us and the government will yield quicker results and will ensure the peace agreement arrives faster than having others on the roundtable,” said Machar. “

He blames mediators from the Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) after the talks failed to meet the August 10 deadline.  IGAD extended peace negotiations to August 28, after the two parties failed to meet the deadline to conclude a peace agreement.

Machar said IGAD is to blame for failure to meet the deadline.

“Personally, I blame the mediators because at times they would suspend the peace talks without a good reason, particularly, when the chief mediator went to New York, we could have continued the peace talks,” said Machar.  “We were saying, we want to have direct talks, but now the mediators are insisting that there would be round table talks with five others; the civil society organizations … and former detainees with the two parties.”

Read more at Voice of America