Published on 12/03/2025
Uganda has deployed special forces in South Sudan as fears grow that the country could descend into civil war.
Kampala’s military chief announced on Tuesday that the troops had been sent to help “secure” Juba, the capital of Uganda’s northern neighbour. Tension between President Salva Kiir and First Vice President Riek Machar are spiralling as a power-sharing deal unravels, and clashes have erupted.
In a series of posts on X, Muhoozi Kainerugaba wrote that “as of two days ago, our Special Forces units entered Juba to secure it”.
“We the UPDF (Ugandan military), only recognise one President of South Sudan, H.E. Salva Kiir … Any move against him is a declaration of war against Uganda! All those who commit that crime will learn what it means!” he added.
The military chief did not elaborate on how long the troops would be stationed in Juba or if Uganda had been asked to aid Kiir.
Sporadic fighting has broken out in South Sudan in recent days as tension threatens to pull Kiir and Machar back into conflict. The pair signed a peace deal to bring a five-year civil war to an end in 2018.
Kiir’s government detained two ministers and several senior military officials allied with Machar last week.
Dozens of soldiers and a general were killed in the northern town of Nasir amid clashes between the South Sudanese army and the White Army militia, which Kiir has linked to Machar.
Kiir has insisted that he will not allow a return to war. However, analysts have warned that there is a threat of renewal of the conflict.
In a statement on Friday, the United Nations urged “all actors to refrain from further violence and for the country’s leaders to urgently intervene to resolve tensions through dialogue and ensure that the security situation in Nasir, and more broadly, does not deteriorate”.
The entry of Ugandan troops mirrors a similar move after the civil war broke out in 2013 when Kampala deployed soldiers to Juba to reinforce Kiir’s forces.
While the troops were withdrawn in 2015, they were again deployed in 2016 after the fighting reignited.
The building tension in South Sudan carries the fear for Uganda that a full-blown war could send refugees across the border and create further regional instability.
Kampala has sent troops across its eastern border into the Democratic Republic of the Congo in recent months, where rebel groups backed by Rwanda are fighting the government over control of eastern regions.
