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Talks brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia are due to begin on Wednesday. The RSF has confirmed it will attend.
Sudan’s army-backed government said that it would not attend US-sponsored peace talks due to get underway in Switzerland this week. Talks brokered by the United States and Saudi Arabia are due to begin on Wednesday. The RSF has confirmed it will attend the negotiations in Switzerland.
A Sudanese government delegation held discussions over the weekend with the US in Saudi Arabia’s city of Jeddah regarding the invitation to the Geneva negotiations.
However, it stopped short of closing the door on taking part in the negotiations to end 15 months of fighting between the army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF). The government has sought assurances that discussions would focus on implementing the existing Jeddah Agreement, signed in May, to facilitate humanitarian action to meet the needs of civilians.
It also said the government should be represented by all its components – not just the military – and rejected the participation of any new observers or facilitators. The US has reportedly described the talks as primarily military, aimed at achieving a ceasefire and facilitating humanitarian aid. The RSF has said it will take part in the Geneva talks.
Previous peace agreements between the two sides have failed. Fighting in Sudan has claimed more than 15,000 lives and displaced some 11 million people.
However, the U.S. Special Envoy for Sudan insisted that talks aimed at establishing peace in Sudan will go ahead although Sudan’s military has yet to confirm its participation.
The U.N., African Union, neighboring Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates — which has been accused of supporting the RSF with weapons, claim officials have denied — are expected to attend the talks as observers.
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The U.N. migration agency said Monday that the humanitarian crisis in Sudan is at “a catastrophic breaking point”. The conflict has killed thousands of people and pushed many into starvation. More than 10.7 million people have been forced to flee their homes since the fighting began, according to the International Organization for Migration. Over 2 million of those fled to neighbouring countries.
