The US special envoy for Sudan said Thursday he wanted “tangible results” from talks on ending the African nation’s devastating war, despite the Sudanese government staying away.
War has raged since April 2023 between the Sudanese army under the country’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), led by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.
The United States is brokering ceasefire talks, which began at an undisclosed location in Switzerland on Wednesday.
While an RSF delegation has come to Switzerland, the Sudanese armed forces (SAF) are unhappy with the format and are not participating.
Tom Perriello, the US special envoy for Sudan, said on the X social media platform that on the second day of the talks, “we continue our relentless work with international partners to save lives and ensure we achieve tangible results.”
At the end of the first day, the United States again urged Sudan’s army to join the talks, which are taking place behind closed doors and could last up to 10 days.
Sudan again made its opposition clear on Thursday.
“It is the nature of Sudanese people to reject threats and intimidation,” Finance Minister Gibril Ibrahim wrote on X.
“Their government, of the same ilk, will not accept mediation imposed by force, and will not be a party to negotiations aimed at legalising the criminal militia’s occupation of civilian facilities and preserving its place in the political and security scene in the future,” he said.
Key aid route
The talks are co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, with the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations acting as a steering group.
The Sudanese army has repeatedly accused the UAE of backing the RSF — allegations the Gulf state denies.
Previous talks in the Saudi city of Jeddah came to nothing.
The talks in Switzerland aim to agree a ceasefire, improve humanitarian access and set up enforcement mechanisms.
The conflict has triggered a major humanitarian crisis. More than half of the population faces acute hunger, while fighting has forced one in five people to flee their homes and tens of thousands have died.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Vedant Patel said Sudan’s western Adre border crossing with Chad was set to reopen — a key supply route into the country.
The closing of the crossing has been a longstanding concern for aid groups struggling to get food and supplies into Sudan’s Darfur region.
“This is something that the Secretary (Antony Blinken) spoke to General Burhan about yesterday, and it’s certainly a welcome announcement,” Patel told reporters.
“We’re aware that the Sudan’s Sovereign Council has agreed to reopen the Adre border crossing with Chad to humanitarian deliveries for three months. We are going to continue to call on both the SAF and the RSF to facilitate unrestricted humanitarian access through all available channels.”
Patel said it was an “important step in providing humanitarian aid to the many impacted Sudanese people”.
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