Sudan’s military chief pushes for US-led peace talks
Sudan’s military chief and de facto head of state, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, has stated that he is prepared to collaborate with the US to end Sudan’s civil war, according to Middle East Monitor on December 17th.
The military has been at war with the rebel paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) since April 2023 after a power struggle turned violent. The RSF recently seized total control of the entire western region of Darfur and is now on the march eastwards, shifting the frontline to the Kordofan region.
After an official state visit to Riyadh, Al-Burhan announced in a statement released by the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs his willingness to working with the Trump administration to find a political resolution to the conflict.
He explicitly highlighted the need to collaborate with key US mediation figures such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Africa Envoy Massad Boulos, the latter of whom Al-Burhan recently denounced as at risk of becoming “an obstacle to the peace sought by all Sudanese.”
In an effort to rectify any diplomatic harm done by his verbal tirade against American diplomatic efforts, Al-Burhan commended Trump’s “determination to engage in efforts to achieve peace and end the war in the country, with the participation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia”, according to Al Arabiya English via AFP on December 16th.
Al-Burhan was in Riyadh following an invitation by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman. Saudi Arabia has greatly intensified its diplomatic efforts towards implementing a permanent ceasefire in Sudan.
Despite the considerable increase in mediation efforts to find a viable political settlement, peace negotiations have reached an impasse after Al-Burhan rejected a proposal put forward by the Sudan Quad, a multilateral mediation group composed of the US, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and the UAE.
Sudan did not provide an official reason for the rejection. However, it recently articulated that it “does not deal officially” with the Quad. This is motivated by the UAE’s central role in the mediation mechanism, as Abu Dhabi is the RSF’s principal backer by supplying it with arms, funding, and intelligence.
Middle East Monitor, Maghrebi.org, Al Arabiya English via AFP, Sudan tribune, Middle East Eye
Want to chase the pulse of North Africa?
Subscribe to receive our FREE weekly PDF magazine
