Russia to establish ties with South Sudan

MOSCOW - Russia is ready to establish diplomatic relations with South Sudan after declaration of its independence, Russian Foreign Ministry's spokesman said on Thursday.

"We are ready to establish diplomatic relations with the new state in Africa and in the nearest future we expect to hold substantive talks on the issue with South Sudanese representatives," the spokesman Alexander Lukashevich said.

The diplomat also said that the Russian president's special envoy to Africa Mikhail Margelov was going to attend the official ceremony of South Sudan's independence proclamation due on July 9 in Juba, future capital of the country.

According to Lukashevich, the Russian envoy is to hand a letter from Russian President Dmitry Medvedev to the leaders of the new state.

South Sudan voted to secede from the north in a referendum in January, which is part of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement in 2005 to end two decades of civil war in the largest Africa nation.