South Sudan’s President has dismissed Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Minister Ramadan Abdallah Goc, following a high-profile diplomatic row with the United States.
The decision was announced through a presidential decree broadcast on state television on Wednesday.
Ramadan Abdallah Goc, who held the position for about a year, has been replaced by Semaya Kumba, a seasoned diplomat and former ambassador to China.
Prior to her new appointment, Kumba was serving as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs.
The reshuffle comes at a sensitive time for Juba, which finds itself embroiled in a diplomatic crisis with Washington.
Tensions escalated after the South Sudanese authorities twice refused entry to a man deported from the U.S., mistakenly identifying him as a non-citizen.
Makula Kintu, who was deported from the United States, was denied entry at Juba International Airport on both April 5 and 6.
South Sudanese officials initially claimed he was a Congolese national from North Kivu, not a South Sudanese citizen.
They alleged he attempted to enter the country using documents belonging to Nimeri Garang, a genuine South Sudanese citizen.
On April 7, the South Sudanese government reiterated its position, stating that their checks had confirmed Kintu’s Congolese origin.
However, the diplomatic fallout was swift. On April 8, the United States suspended visa issuance for all South Sudanese nationals — a response that Juba criticized as “disproportionate.”
In an apparent bid to defuse tensions, the South Sudanese government reversed its stance.
A statement released Tuesday said that “in order to preserve friendly relations with the United States,” Makula Kintu would be allowed to enter South Sudan.
Authorities also ordered airport officials to facilitate his arrival “starting tomorrow.”
Despite this conciliatory move, South Sudan’s Foreign Ministry emphasized that its earlier investigations had found Kintu to be Congolese.
The incident occurs amid an already fraught political atmosphere, worsened by the continued detention of First Vice President Riek Machar.
Observers suggest that the diplomatic mismanagement surrounding the Kintu case may have contributed to Goc’s removal from office.
