By Adel Abdelrheem and Betul Yilmaz
KHARTOUM / ISTANBUL (AA) – As fighting continues to rage across Sudan between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the US has resumed mediation efforts to resolve the conflict that has killed thousands and displaced millions since 2023.
Sudan fell into civil war in April 2023 after the army and RSF, previously sharing power, fell out over plans to integrate their forces during a transition to democracy.
Several attempts by mediators have failed to resolve the conflict, which claimed the lives of more than 20,000 people and displaced 14 million, according to local and UN figures.
In May 2023, the two warring rivals reached an agreement in Jeddah on protecting civilians after mediation efforts by the US and Saudi Arabia. Several ceasefire deals were reached, but the repeated violations by the two foes and mutual accusations pushed Washington and Riyadh to suspend their mediation.
On Saturday, however, US Senior Adviser for Arab and African Affairs Massad Boulos said that the international Quartet of the US, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) met in Washington to discuss efforts "for securing an urgent humanitarian truce, achieving a permanent ceasefire, halting external support, and advancing a transition to civilian governance" in Sudan.
He said the participants reaffirmed their commitment to the Sept. 12 ministerial statement, which calls for a 3-month humanitarian truce to allow urgent humanitarian aid to reach all areas as a precursor to a permanent ceasefire. They agreed to establish a joint operational committee to enhance coordination on priorities in Sudan.
The Quartet meeting coincided with Sudanese Foreign Minister Mohieldin Salem’s visit to the US to discuss bilateral relations and efforts to establish peace in the war-torn country.
Before the Quartet’s meeting, Sudan’s ruling Sovereignty Council underlined its rejection on Oct. 23 of any direct or indirect negotiations with the RSF in Washington.
The council reaffirmed the Sudanese government’s commitment to “a national solution that preserves the country’s sovereignty, unity, stability, and the rights of the Sudanese people” regarding any dialogue to end the war.
- New balance
Analysts say Washington’s renewed efforts and intensified contacts with regional actors stem from a growing conviction that the ongoing war threatens regional security and exacerbates humanitarian conditions in Sudan and neighboring countries.
According to sources familiar with the matter, Washington seeks a new balance by piling pressure for resuming negotiations between the Sudanese army and the RSF, as fighting continues to escalate.
On Sunday, fierce clashes continued to rage on between the army and the RSF in El-Fasher, the capital of North Darfur state in western Sudan.
Sudanese political analyst Amir Babiker Abdella told Anadolu that the ongoing talks in Washington with the Sudanese government were part of US pressure to end the war.
Abdella said that the first round of negotiations in May 2023 was held under the agenda of the former administration of Joe Biden.
"With the rise of the new US administration, there appears to be more attention to global peace issues in general to help serve US interests,” he said.
"The new administration has been involved in the Sudan peace process in coordination with multiple parties starting from the Jeddah platform, which represented the first negotiation table accepted by both warring parties," Abdella said.
He said the latest US efforts appear more serious as the Sudan file moved to the White House, with senior adviser Boulos taking over the issue instead of the State Department, reflecting heightened attention to peace issues.
“The US talks cannot be separated from the Quartet’s efforts, they are part of the mechanism and the US vision that calls for the inclusion of Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Egypt, given their influence on the war in Sudan.”
The Sudanese analyst said that the move is aimed at creating “a necessary balance to boost the warring parties’ confidence that the mechanism can make breakthroughs.”
- New shift
Mohamed Abdel Hakim, a leader of the Civil Democratic Alliance for Revolutionary Forces (Somoud), said the US talks show that it is impossible to resolve the conflict through only military means.
Abdel Hakim told Anadolu that the discussion also showed the difficulty of reaching non-negotiated solutions, which is currently the main objective of Washington and its partners in the international Quartet.
Abdel Hakim noted signs of "a new shift following pressure by the US and the Quartet and global mobilization for Sudan’s peace, bringing the warring parties closer to the negotiation table after two years of reluctance."
He said one of the most notable signs of this shift is the potential near-term achievement of a humanitarian truce, followed by understandings on a ceasefire.
Abdel Hakim stressed that the warring parties have no choice but to respond to the desire of most Sudanese people to end the war, achieve peace, and transition to civilian democracy.
The recent Quartet initiative "represents a glimmer of hope for the majority of Sudanese people in ending the war between the army and RSF," he said, calling the Washington talks “a significant breakthrough.”