PSC/AHG/COMM/2.(CCCXCVII) Page 1 COMMUNIQUÉ The Peace and Security Council of the African Union (AU), at its 397thmeeting, held on 23 September 2013, adopted the following decision on the situation between the Republic of Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan and other related issues: Council, 1. Takes note of the Report of the African Union High-Level Implementation Panel on Sudan and South Sudan (AUHIP) on the situation between Sudan and South Sudan and other related developments [PSC/AHG/4(CCCXCVII)], as well as of the introductory remarks of the Chairperson of the Commission and the briefing given by the Chairperson of the AUHIP. Council also takes note of the statements made by the representatives of the Republic of Sudan and the Republic of South Sudan, Ethiopia in its capacity as the Chair of the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and the United Nations (UN); 2. Recalls its earlier press statements and communiqués on the situation between Sudan and South Sudan; 3. Commends the AUHIP and its members, namely former Presidents Thabo Mbeki, Abdulsalami Abubakar and Pierre Buyoya, as well as its support team, for their continued efforts to assist the Parties to establish cooperative relations toward the goal of two viable states, at peace with one another. Council also commends the Chair of IGAD, Prime Minister Haile Mariam Desalegn, for his continued support to the efforts of the AUHIP and the two Parties. Council expresses its appreciation to the United Nations, in particular the Secretary-General’s Special Envoy, Haile Menkerios, and the UN Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA), as well as to other bilateral and multilateral partners, for their continued support to the AU-led efforts; 4. Welcomes the outcomes of the Summit meeting between President Omar Hassan al Bashir of the Republic of Sudan and President Salva Kiir Mayardiit of the Republic of South Sudan, held in Khartoum on 3 September 2013; 5. Notes with satisfaction the progress made in the implementation of the proposals contained in the letter sent by the Chairperson of the AUHIP to the Presidents of Sudan and South Sudan, on 9 June 2013. In this respect, Council acknowledges the cooperation the two Governments extended to the Ad Hoc Investigative Mechanism (AIM) established to investigate allegations regarding the harbouring and support to rebels fighting against the other State, which has just completed its report, as well as the steps taken in the implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding on Non-Aggression and Cooperation of February 2012, and encourages the two Governments to continue with their efforts, including through reinforcing the existing bilateral structures such as the Joint Political and Security Mechanism; 6. Also notes with satisfaction the cooperation that Sudan and South Sudan extended to the AU Border Programme Technical Team (AUBP-TT), tasked to conclusively determine the centreline of the Safe Demilitarized Border Zone (SDBZ) on the ground. Council further notes the agreement by the two Presidents to ensure that the local populations in the vicinity of the SDBZ are properly sensitized on the nature and purpose of the SDBZ. In this regard, Council emphasizes that the SDBZ and its centreline represent only the location of the separation line between the armed forces of the two States and do not have any bearing on the definitive and final location of the boundary;