South Sudan president visits Uganda

South Sudan President Salva Kiir on Thursday started a two-day state visit to Uganda in which regional security is high on agenda. Kiir was received at State House Entebbe, 40 km south of capital Kampala by his Ugandan counterpart Yoweri Museveni. Okello Oryem, Uganda's minister of state for international affairs, told Xinhua in an interview that one of the priority issues to be discussed will be the implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) between South Sudan and Sudan. The CPA ended a two-decade long civil war in 2005 between the Sudan People's Liberation Army (SPLA) in the south and the Sudan government. As stipulated in the CPA, South Sudan held a referendum in July this year in which it seceded from the north becoming Africa's 54th nation. Despite the breakaway from the north, there is still animosity between South Sudan and Sudan. At Entebbe, Kiir led a delegation of top security officials which included Gen. John Kong, minister of defense and veteran affairs, Emmanuel Lowila, minister in the Office of the President and the SPLA Chief of Staff Gen. Lames Hoth, among others. He received a red carpet welcome plus a 21-gun salute after receiving a bouquet of flowers at the arrival ceremonies.