South Sudan’s post-independence history is one of poverty and strife.

South Sudan’s authorities have stated that they would stay in power for another two years beyond an agreed-upon date, drawing condemnation from global allies.

Here’s a look at the world’s newest country’s terrible past.

South Sudan declares independence from Sudan on July 9, after six years of autonomy and decades of conflict.

Salva Kiir is the president, while Riek Machar is his deputy. The competitors, who belonged to two distinct ethnic groupings, established the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), which spearheaded the independence movement.

On July 23, Kiir dismisses Machar, all cabinet ministers, their deputies, and numerous police brigadiers.

Kiir claims that his soldiers stopped an attempted coup by Machar on December 16 after a night of combat in Juba. Machar disputes the accusation.

The conflict has extended outside the capital, fueled by conflicts between Kiir’s Dinka and Machar’s Nuer groups.

It sparks tit-for-tat atrocities, escalating into a five-year conflict. However, rioting between followers of both presidents erupts anew in July. Machar goes into exile, accusing Kiir of attempting to assassinate him.

On June 20, Kiir and Machar will meet for the first time in two years. They sign a new peace accord on September 12 to end a conflict that has killed almost 400,000 people and displaced nearly four million.

The agreement sets the door for a power-sharing administration to be constituted in February 2020, after significant delay and international pressure, with Machar returned as vice president.

However, armed conflict persists, with regular killings between opposing ethnic groups and a southern insurgency displacing hundreds of thousands of people.

The UN has repeatedly extended its peacekeeping deployment, as well as a weapons embargo.

According to a UN study issued in April, the poor pace of implementing the peace agreement threatens a return into “large-scale violence.”

Kiir includes opposition MPs in a new parliament on May 8, after a more than a year wait.

In March, the UN charges the government of war crimes for rights breaches in the southwest last year, asking for investigations against dozens of persons, including atrocities against minors.

In the same month, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) forecasts that natural disasters and warfare would cause acute hunger for more than 70% of South Sudan’s 11 million people this year.

After years of impasse, Kiir and Machar agree in April to establish a unified military forces command, a major requirement of the peace pact.

Four months later, they declare that the transitional government would continue in office for an additional two years beyond the agreed-upon timeframe, a decision that international partners have criticized as lacking legitimacy.

The decision was made, according to Martin Elia Lomuro, minister of cabinet affairs, “to address the problems that hamper the execution of the peace deal.”

However, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway have all boycotted the announcement, citing concerns that the extension did not include talks with civil society or foreign partners, among other organizations.