After a wave of disagreements and confrontations between the two countries at the UN Security Council, a rare telephone conversation brought together the President of the UAE, Mohammed bin Zayed, and the President of the Sovereignty Council of Sudan, Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan. the move was unexpected for many observers.
The phone conversation was first reported by the Emirates News Agency, which reported on Friday that Bin Zayed had received a phone call from Al-Burhan, in which the two sides discussed “relations between the two countries, developments in the situation in Sudan and ways to help”. To get out of the crisis Sudan is experiencing.”
According to the Emirates Agency, Bin Zayed stressed that the UAE is willing to support all solutions aimed at stopping and ending the crisis in Sudan, “in a way that helps strengthen its stability and security and achieve the aspirations of its people for development and prosperity”.
A few hours after the publication of the news by the Emirati agency, the Sovereignty Council of Sudan published a statement in which Al-Burhan announced that he had received a phone call from the President of the Emirates, who confirmed that they “want to help stop the ongoing war. Sudan”.
The statement stated that Al-Burhan informed Bin Zayed that “the UAE accuses the Sudanese, with many proofs and evidences, of supporting the rebels and helping those who kill the Sudanese, destroy and displace the country, and the UAE must stop this.”
Sudanese political analyst Taher Al-Muatasem believes the phone conversation between Al-Burhan and Bin Zayed is “another step to come”, especially in light of rumors about the UAE’s support for ending the war and rebuilding Sudan.
Al-Muatasem told the Al-Hurra website, “The step came in the context of intensive discussions held by the American special envoy in Sudan, Tom Perriello, with various actors in the Middle East, with the aim of ending the war in Sudan.”
He noted that the phone conversation followed Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s visit to Sudan and his meeting with Al-Burhan, who was reported to have brokered the phone conversation with the Ethiopian visitor.
He added, “The conversation also came after the Cairo Conference and the initiative of the African Union, where various Sudanese parties came together to discuss ways to stop the war in Sudan, which represents the culmination of all these movements.”
Last December, the conflict between Sudan and the UAE reached the stage of diplomatic escalation, as Khartoum declared 15 diplomats working in the UAE embassy persona non grata.
The Sudanese move comes in response to the Emirati decision to expel the military annex of the Khartoum embassy in Abu Dhabi and several diplomats from its territory. While the embassy of each country continues to work in the other country.
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On the other hand, Mohamed Khalifa Siddiq, professor of political science at Sudanese universities, believes that the conversation between Burhan bin Zayed is a “big transformation”, as it is the first between the two men since the start of the war between the army and Rapid. Support Forces on April 15, 2023.
A friend told the Al-Hurra website: “What gives the phone conversation added value is that it came after diplomatic tension and discussion between the two countries at the UN Security Council, which gives hope for an end to the war in Sudan.”
The political science professor hoped that the talks would bring results that would help end the conflict, noting that media platforms around the army were talking about the pledge to stop supplying military equipment and aid to the UAE’s rapid aid forces. Reconstruction of Sudan after the war.
He added: “If these reports are true, Sudan is entering a new phase, especially if the agreement between Bin Zayed and Al-Burhan is built.”
The Sudanese government’s accusations against the UAE do not match those issued by some military commanders, as Al-Harith Idris, Sudan’s representative to the United Nations, escalated his rhetoric against the Gulf state in the Security Council.
The confrontation between Al-Harith and the US ambassador to the United Nations, Mohammed Abu Shehab, took place during the Security Council’s session on the situation in Sudan on 18 June, when the Sudanese representative accused Abu Dhabi of being a patron of the region. of the Rapid Support rebellion.
Abu Shihab called Sudan’s allegations “ridiculous and false” and aimed to divert attention from serious violations on the ground.
According to Al-Mu’tasim, elements of former President Omar al-Bashir’s regime may be planning to obstruct the Sudanese-Emirati rapprochement, and prevent the army leaders from reaching a peace agreement with the Rapid Aid Force.
He added that “elements of the former regime are likely to be active against any steps to stop the war, but the international community, which has sensed the danger of famine threatening the Sudanese, and the increased displacement and asylum rates, will push for a peaceful solution to the Sudanese crisis.”
The same spokesman stated that a tripartite summit between Bin Zayed, Al-Burhan and Abiy Ahmed will be held in Addis Ababa, and said: “The information I have received from very credible sources indicates that the summit will take place soon.”
Kabbashi previously held unannounced talks with the deputy commander of the Rapid Assistance Force, Abdul Rahim Dagalo, in the Bahraini capital, Manama, last January, but the talks broke down after information about them was leaked.
The Forces for Freedom and Change accused elements of the Bashir regime of “orchestrating a systematic campaign of criticism and betrayal against Kabashi to block his efforts to conclude negotiations with Rapid Support”, while traditional regime leaders deny the accusation.
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On the other hand, Siddiq believes that the telephone conversation does not only indicate the position of Al-Burhan, but also the position of the leadership of the army, “which protects him from any attempt aimed at besieging him, so that he does not become a way. that helps end the war.”
He stated that those known as the Falcons movement within the army, those who reject the dialogue with the Rapid Assistance Force or the rapprochement with the UAE, have not shown any objection to the dialogue, even though more than two days have passed. .
He added: “Army leaders who have been criticizing the UAE seem to see the phone conversation as a positive change in the UAE’s position, so they were not in a position to reject it.”
Sudanese Army Commander-in-Chief Yasser Al-Atta directed sharp criticism at the UAE, not the army leaders, in his latest statements last Monday, accusing Bin Zayed of working to destroy Sudan by providing military equipment to the Rapid Aid Forces.
Al-Atta did not comment on the conversation between Bin Zayed and Al-Burhan.
The professor of political science expressed his support for holding a tripartite summit between Al-Burhan, Bin Zayed and Abiy Ahmed, and suggested consultations and meetings at lower levels “because the differences between the two countries have reached complex stages, they need discussions and technical meetings. level. in lower levels, opening the way to implement what was agreed in the conversation.”
The same spokesman stated that the Islamic Movement, the religious authority of the Bashir regime, which has declared enmity with the UAE, did not declare an official position to reject the dialogue, “this indicates that Al-Burhan sent them reassurance. Those who fear the Emirati-Sudanese rapprochement will not affect them negatively”.
He added that “the continuation of the war represents a loss for the Islamic movement, which lost many members in the battles”.
But Al-Mu’tasim returned and stated that the Islamic Movement had opted for the gun to return to power, “he took it out and will remove it from the political scene in the future.”
He added that “the use of non-civilian and non-peaceful means and tools to obtain power and the establishment of armed brigades and militias harms the peace process and civil transformation, threatens the future of Sudan and makes political existence difficult”.
Tom Perriello, the American envoy to Sudan, announced last March that “the United States clearly sees the need for dialogue between the warring parties in Sudan to be comprehensive, and to include the UAE, Egypt, the Inter-Governmental Authority for East African Development (IGAD), and the African Union. “.
On April 15, 2023, as the conflict between the army and the Rapid Aid Force broke out, an initiative by Saudi Arabia, with the support of the United States, was quickly activated to put out the fire that engulfed the Sudanese capital, Khartoum.
But the efforts made by regional and international actors do not seem, so far, to be able to put an end to the struggle between the two parties, because these efforts often collide with the arsenal of rejection and resistance, “parties that are united”. a clear effect on the equation of the conflict and the dominance of the fight”, in the opinion of the specialists.
The war between the army and the Rapid Aid Force has left more than 14,000 people dead and thousands more injured, while the United Nations says about 25 million people, or about half of Sudan’s population, are in need of aid and facing starvation. can be seen on the horizon.
The International Organization for Migration, linked to the United Nations, said last June that the number of internally displaced people in Sudan had reached more than 10 million people.
The organization explained that the number includes 2.83 million people who were displaced from their homes before the start of the current war, due to the multiple local conflicts that have occurred in recent years.
According to the UN organization, more than two million other people have sought refuge abroad, most of them in Chad, South Sudan and Egypt.
The number of external refugees and internally displaced people means that more than a quarter of Sudan’s population of 47 million people have been displaced from their homes.
