Foreign relations of Sudan
Encyclopedia
The foreign relations of Sudan are generally in line with the Muslim
Arab world
, but are also based on Sudan
's economic ties with the People's Republic of China
and Western Europe
.
, Sudan's neighbor to the west, declared a 'state of belligerency' with Sudan and accused the country of being the "common enemy of the nation (Chad)." This happened after the December 18 attack on Adré, which left about 100 people dead. A statement issued by Chadian government on December 23, accused Sudanese militias of making daily incursions into Chad, stealing cattle, killing innocent people and burning villages on the Chadian border. The statement went on to call for Chadians to form a patriotic front against Sudan. On May 11, 2008 Sudan announced it was cutting diplomatic relations with Chad, claiming that it was helping rebels in Darfur
to attack the Sudanese capital Khartoum
n region. The two countries are connected by various cultural ties, and political aspirations.Sudan showed great solidarity with Egypt in its Camp David
peace initiatives with Israel
in the late 1970s. In 2008, Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif
urged the two countries to focus on two specific projects: the Aljazera project which aims to cultivate some two million acres (8,000 km²) of land in Sudan, and a joint project to improve food security in agricultural and meat production.
Sudan
asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib Triangle
", a barren area of 20,580 km² under partial Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative boundary which supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899.
Egypt's policy on Sudan is that it is in favor of a united Sudan. As such Egypt was not directly involved in the Sudan Peace Process that was hosted in Kenya under the auspices of IGAD and that gave the peoples of south Sudan the right to secede and form an independent state in 2011 after the long and brutal Sudanese civil war that cumulatively lasted more than 40 years and claimed over 2 million lives.
, due to the support that the Sudanese government had given to the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front
. However, relations were strained for a time following the 26 June 1995 assassination attempt against Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak
as he was leaving the OAU summit meeting in Addis Ababa. The subsequent investigation revealed that Sudan was involved in this act, forcing the Ethiopian government to take a series of steps against Sudan that September, which included closing the Sudanese consulate in Gambela
, reducing the number of Sudanese embassy staff, and terminating all Sudan Airways
and Ethiopian Airlines
flights between the two countries. However the start of the Eritrean-Ethiopian War
led to Sudan and Ethiopia put this conflict between them and normalizing their relations by November 1999 when president Omar Hassan al-Bashir made a formal visit to Addis Ababa.
Efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan were delayed by the Second Sudanese Civil War
. In May 2008, residents along the western Ethiopian border reportedly discovered that the government had agreed to demarcate this boundary when Sudanese soldiers forced them out of their homes. It was reported that as many as 2,000 people were displaced in the Gambela Region
, and the Sudanese army reportedly set fire to two dozen Ethiopian farms and imprisoned 34 people in the Amhara Region
. However, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi publicly denied that any Ethiopians had been displaced by this agreement.
Ethiopia shelters 66,980 refugees from Sudan, most of whom live in refugee camps in the Benishangul-Gumuz and Gambela Region
s.
deteriorated in the early 1970s and reached a low in October 1981, when Libya began a policy of crossborder raids into western Sudan. After the 1989 coup d'état
, the military government resumed diplomatic relations with Libya, as part of a policy of improving relations with neighboring Arab states. In early 1990, Libya and the Sudan announced that they would seek “unity.” This unity was never implemented.
sovereignty
over Western Sahara
. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=2&id=11765
and Sudan established diplomatic relations on July 1, 1956. In 1967, Bulgaria sent the first Bulgarian ambassador to Khartoum
. The activities of the Bulgarian embassy in Khartoum were terminated in April 1990, and later reestablished in March, 2005. In 2006 the General Consulate of the Sudan, in Sofia
, Bulgaria has been upgraded to the rank of embassy.
have been reprinted by a series of newspapers in Denmark and other European countries. Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir
has backed up the country and other Muslim states, requiring them to boycott Danish products just as Sudan did. He even stated that "No Danes shall ever again be able to set foot in Sudan." Due to the tensions, the two countries have closed their embassies.
and Sudan has an embassy in Moscow
.
For decades, Russia
and Sudan
have maintained a strong economic and politically strategic partnership. Due to solidarity with both the United States
and with the Soviet Union
and with the allies of the two nations, Sudan declared neutrality and instead chose membership in the Non-Aligned Movement
throughout the Cold War
. Russo-Sudanese relations were minorly damaged when, in 1971 members of the Sudanese Communist Party
attempted to assassinate then-president Gaafar Nimeiry
, and Nimeiry pegged the blame on the USSR, thus enhancing Sudanese relations with the West, and were damaged again when Sudan supported the Mujahadeen in Afghanistan
when the USSR invaded in 1979
. Due to a common enemy
, diplomatic cooperation between the two countries dramatically got back on track during the late 1990s and early 2000s, when Vladimir Putin
was elected the President, and then the Prime Minister of Russia
, and along with Chinese
leader Hu Jintao
opposed UN
Peacekeepers in Darfur
. Russia strongly supports Sudan's territorial integrity
and opposes the creation of an independent Darfurian state. Also, Russia is Sudan's strongest investment partner [in Europe
] and political ally in Europe, and Russia has repeatedly and significantly regarded Sudan as an important global ally in the African continent
. For decades there have been Sudanese collegians studying in Russian universities.
. Turkey has an embassy in Khartoum
. Northern Sudan was under the rule of Turkey as a part of the Ottoman Empire
and no political problems exist between the two countries
Although on opposing sides of the Middle East Peace Process
spectrum, Turkey and Sudan have in recent years joined forces to end the ongoing conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Both countries have made repeated plea talks during the offensive in Gaza during the beginning of 2009 to Palestinian officials to be of both economic and political aid to the turmoilic state.
Gordon Brown said in response "The humanitarian agencies that are working in Sudan should be allowed to stay there and continue their work."
In April 2009, Oxfam and other aid agencies appealled their ban saying that "The expulsion is already affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands of the very poorest and most vulnerable Sudanese people". Oxfam have denied working for the ICC saying that "We don't have an agreement with the ICC, we are a humanitarian organisation and we are impartial," and "We don't have anything to do with the ICC and we don't have a position on its decision."
and Iraq's Embassy is in Khartoum
.
Sudanese-Iraqi relations were and still are very close, Sudan supported Iraq during the Gulf War
, and following the war, Baghdad
established Khartoum
as a major center for Iraqi intelligence. Iraq and Sudan are connected by remote cultural similarities such as language (both countries speak Arabic
, though the two are different in dialect) and religion, both are Muslim
(however Sudan is predominantly Sunni, while the majority of Iraq is Shia). Tension between the two countries intensified during the American invasion
, even though Sudan fiercely opposed the proposal. Ties between Iraq
and Sudan
have since improved.
began in June 1967, Sudan declared war on Israel
. However, in the early 1970s, Sudan gradually shifted its stance and was supportive of the Camp David Accords.
, being former British colonies, and refusing to recognize Israel as a legitimate nation, Pakistan
and Sudan
have shared generally close and warm relations for decades. Both countries are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Like Minded Group
, and the Group of 77
; these relations strengthened when Sudan declared its support for Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani Wars. But because of certain issues however, such as Pakistan's strong relations with the United States, and friendly Sudanese relations with India
, Iran
, and Bangladesh
, things between the two countries have reached a complex point. Also, another very important topic which somewhat strains ties between Islamabad
and Khartoum
is the December 2001 transferral of Al-Jazeera photographer Sami al-Hajj at the hands of the Pakistani government to Guantanamo Bay. Despite this tension, Pakistan and Sudan still engage in collaborative dialogue at OIC summits to improve political stability in the Middle East
and the Islamic World http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/13/content_8162843.htm; in other words contact between the two nations still remains friendly. Pakistan is with the people of Sudan on its boundary issues with Egypt
and Kenya
.
, is Sudan
's biggest trade partner. China imports oil
, from Sudan, and Sudan imports low cost items as well as armaments from China. China and Sudan enjoy a very robust and productive relationship in the fields of diplomacy, economic trade, and political strategic. The two nations established diplomatic relations on January 4, 1959 and have since become strongly close global allies. Education also has close ties, as Sudanian students go to China to learn Chinese, and Chinese students go to Sudan to learn Arabic.
On June 3, 2008, US - Sudan normalization talks broke down over the issue of conflicts in the oil-producing central region of Abyei.
, while Sudan has an embassy in Kuala Lumpur
. Both countries are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Sudan has brotherly relations with Malaysia.
Muslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...
Arab world
Arab world
The Arab world refers to Arabic-speaking states, territories and populations in North Africa, Western Asia and elsewhere.The standard definition of the Arab world comprises the 22 states and territories of the Arab League stretching from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Arabian Sea in the...
, but are also based on Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
's economic ties with the People's Republic of China
People's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
and Western Europe
Western Europe
Western Europe is a loose term for the collection of countries in the western most region of the European continents, though this definition is context-dependent and carries cultural and political connotations. One definition describes Western Europe as a geographic entity—the region lying in the...
.
Chad
On December 23, 2005 ChadChad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
, Sudan's neighbor to the west, declared a 'state of belligerency' with Sudan and accused the country of being the "common enemy of the nation (Chad)." This happened after the December 18 attack on Adré, which left about 100 people dead. A statement issued by Chadian government on December 23, accused Sudanese militias of making daily incursions into Chad, stealing cattle, killing innocent people and burning villages on the Chadian border. The statement went on to call for Chadians to form a patriotic front against Sudan. On May 11, 2008 Sudan announced it was cutting diplomatic relations with Chad, claiming that it was helping rebels in Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
to attack the Sudanese capital Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
Egypt
Egypt and Sudan have enjoyed intimate and longstanding historical ties, seeing as they are each other's closest allies in the North AfricaNorth Africa
North Africa or Northern Africa is the northernmost region of the African continent, linked by the Sahara to Sub-Saharan Africa. Geopolitically, the United Nations definition of Northern Africa includes eight countries or territories; Algeria, Egypt, Libya, Morocco, South Sudan, Sudan, Tunisia, and...
n region. The two countries are connected by various cultural ties, and political aspirations.Sudan showed great solidarity with Egypt in its Camp David
Camp David
Camp David is the country retreat of the President of the United States and his guests. It is located in low wooded hills about 60 mi north-northwest of Washington, D.C., on the property of Catoctin Mountain Park in unincorporated Frederick County, Maryland, near Thurmont, at an elevation of...
peace initiatives with Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
in the late 1970s. In 2008, Egyptian Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif
Ahmed Nazif
Ahmed Nazif served as the Prime Minister of Egypt from 14 July 2004 to 29 January 2011, when his cabinet was dismissed by President Hosni Mubarak in light of a popular uprising that led to the Egyptian Revolution of 2011...
urged the two countries to focus on two specific projects: the Aljazera project which aims to cultivate some two million acres (8,000 km²) of land in Sudan, and a joint project to improve food security in agricultural and meat production.
Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
asserts its claim to the "Hala'ib Triangle
Hala'ib Triangle
The Hala'ib Triangle is an area of land measuring located on the Red Sea's African coast...
", a barren area of 20,580 km² under partial Sudanese administration that is defined by an administrative boundary which supersedes the treaty boundary of 1899.
Egypt's policy on Sudan is that it is in favor of a united Sudan. As such Egypt was not directly involved in the Sudan Peace Process that was hosted in Kenya under the auspices of IGAD and that gave the peoples of south Sudan the right to secede and form an independent state in 2011 after the long and brutal Sudanese civil war that cumulatively lasted more than 40 years and claimed over 2 million lives.
Ethiopia
Relations between Ethiopia and Sudan were very good following the end of the Ethiopian Civil WarEthiopian Civil War
The Ethiopian Civil War began on September 12, 1974 when the Marxist Derg staged a coup d'état against Emperor Haile Selassie, and lasted until the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front , a coalition of rebel groups, overthrew the government in 1991. The war overlapped other Cold War...
, due to the support that the Sudanese government had given to the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front
Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front
The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front is the ruling political coalition in Ethiopia. It is an alliance of four other groups: the Oromo Peoples' Democratic Organization , the Amhara National Democratic Movement , the South Ethiopian Peoples' Democratic Front The Ethiopian People's...
. However, relations were strained for a time following the 26 June 1995 assassination attempt against Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak
Hosni Mubarak
Muhammad Hosni Sayyid Mubarak is a former Egyptian politician and military commander. He served as the fourth President of Egypt from 1981 to 2011....
as he was leaving the OAU summit meeting in Addis Ababa. The subsequent investigation revealed that Sudan was involved in this act, forcing the Ethiopian government to take a series of steps against Sudan that September, which included closing the Sudanese consulate in Gambela
Gambela, Ethiopia
Gambela is a city in Ethiopia and the capital of the Gambela Region or kilil. Located in Administrative Zone 1, at the confluence of the Baro River and its tributary the Jajjaba, the city has a latitude and longitude of and an elevation of 526 meters....
, reducing the number of Sudanese embassy staff, and terminating all Sudan Airways
Sudan Airways
Sudan Airways is the national airline of Sudan, headquartered in Khartoum. The airline operates under the IATA airline designator SD and the ICAO airline designator SUD, while its callsign is SUDANAIR....
and Ethiopian Airlines
Ethiopian Airlines
Ethiopian Airlines , formerly Ethiopian Air Lines, often referred to as simply Ethiopian, is an airline headquartered on the grounds of Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. It serves as the country's flag carrier, and is wholly owned by the Government of Ethiopia...
flights between the two countries. However the start of the Eritrean-Ethiopian War
Eritrean-Ethiopian War
The Eritrean–Ethiopian War took place from May 1998 to June 2000 between Ethiopia and Eritrea, forming one of the conflicts in the Horn of Africa...
led to Sudan and Ethiopia put this conflict between them and normalizing their relations by November 1999 when president Omar Hassan al-Bashir made a formal visit to Addis Ababa.
Efforts to demarcate the porous boundary with Sudan were delayed by the Second Sudanese Civil War
Second Sudanese Civil War
The Second Sudanese Civil War started in 1983, although it was largely a continuation of the First Sudanese Civil War of 1955 to 1972. Although it originated in southern Sudan, the civil war spread to the Nuba mountains and Blue Nile by the end of the 1980s....
. In May 2008, residents along the western Ethiopian border reportedly discovered that the government had agreed to demarcate this boundary when Sudanese soldiers forced them out of their homes. It was reported that as many as 2,000 people were displaced in the Gambela Region
Gambela Region
Gambela is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia. Previously known as "Region 12", its capital is Gambela. Lying between the Baro and Akobo Rivers, the western part of Gambela includes the Baro salient....
, and the Sudanese army reportedly set fire to two dozen Ethiopian farms and imprisoned 34 people in the Amhara Region
Amhara Region
Amhara is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia, containing the homeland of the Amhara people. Previously known as Region 3, its capital is Bahir Dar....
. However, Prime Minister Meles Zenawi publicly denied that any Ethiopians had been displaced by this agreement.
Ethiopia shelters 66,980 refugees from Sudan, most of whom live in refugee camps in the Benishangul-Gumuz and Gambela Region
Gambela Region
Gambela is one of the nine ethnic divisions of Ethiopia. Previously known as "Region 12", its capital is Gambela. Lying between the Baro and Akobo Rivers, the western part of Gambela includes the Baro salient....
s.
Libya
Relations between Sudan and LibyaLibya
Libya is an African country in the Maghreb region of North Africa bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to the east, Sudan to the southeast, Chad and Niger to the south, and Algeria and Tunisia to the west....
deteriorated in the early 1970s and reached a low in October 1981, when Libya began a policy of crossborder raids into western Sudan. After the 1989 coup d'état
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
, the military government resumed diplomatic relations with Libya, as part of a policy of improving relations with neighboring Arab states. In early 1990, Libya and the Sudan announced that they would seek “unity.” This unity was never implemented.
Morocco
Sudan is one of the states that recognise MoroccanMorocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
sovereignty
Sovereignty
Sovereignty is the quality of having supreme, independent authority over a geographic area, such as a territory. It can be found in a power to rule and make law that rests on a political fact for which no purely legal explanation can be provided...
over Western Sahara
Western Sahara
Western Sahara is a disputed territory in North Africa, bordered by Morocco to the north, Algeria to the northeast, Mauritania to the east and south, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Its surface area amounts to . It is one of the most sparsely populated territories in the world, mainly...
. http://www.moroccotimes.com/paper/article.asp?idr=2&id=11765
South Sudan
Official diplomatic relations commenced on 9 July 2011, the day of South Sudan independence when Sudan became the first state to recognise South Sudanese independence. Although cultural and economic relations predate independence and even the civil war between the two entities.Uganda
Relations with Uganda are good in spite of the death of former Vice-President Dr John Garang de Mabior whilst on a Ugandan Presidential Helicopter.Bulgaria
BulgariaBulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
and Sudan established diplomatic relations on July 1, 1956. In 1967, Bulgaria sent the first Bulgarian ambassador to Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
. The activities of the Bulgarian embassy in Khartoum were terminated in April 1990, and later reestablished in March, 2005. In 2006 the General Consulate of the Sudan, in Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
, Bulgaria has been upgraded to the rank of embassy.
Denmark
Danish-Sudanese relations are extremely poor. On February 27, 2008, Sudan decided to boycott Danish goods after the controversial Muhammad cartoonsJyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy
The Jyllands-Posten Muhammad cartoons controversy began after 12 editorial cartoons, most of which depicted the Islamic prophet Muhammad, were published in the Danish newspaper Jyllands-Posten on 30 September 2005...
have been reprinted by a series of newspapers in Denmark and other European countries. Sudanese president Omar al-Bashir
Omar al-Bashir
Lieutenant General Omar Hassan Ahmad Al-Bashir is the current President of Sudan and the head of the National Congress Party. He came to power in 1989 when he, as a brigadier in the Sudanese army, led a group of officers in a bloodless military coup that ousted the government of Prime Minister...
has backed up the country and other Muslim states, requiring them to boycott Danish products just as Sudan did. He even stated that "No Danes shall ever again be able to set foot in Sudan." Due to the tensions, the two countries have closed their embassies.
Russia
Russia has an embassy in KhartoumKhartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
and Sudan has an embassy in Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
.
For decades, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
have maintained a strong economic and politically strategic partnership. Due to solidarity with both the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and with the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
and with the allies of the two nations, Sudan declared neutrality and instead chose membership in the Non-Aligned Movement
Non-Aligned Movement
The Non-Aligned Movement is a group of states considering themselves not aligned formally with or against any major power bloc. As of 2011, the movement had 120 members and 17 observer countries...
throughout the Cold War
Cold War
The Cold War was the continuing state from roughly 1946 to 1991 of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition between the Communist World—primarily the Soviet Union and its satellite states and allies—and the powers of the Western world, primarily the United States...
. Russo-Sudanese relations were minorly damaged when, in 1971 members of the Sudanese Communist Party
Sudanese Communist Party
The Sudanese Communist Party is a Communist political party in the Republic of Sudan. Founded in 1946, it was a major force in Sudanese politics until 1971, when military ruler Gaafar al-Nimeiry launched a wave of repression against the party after a failed coup implicated...
attempted to assassinate then-president Gaafar Nimeiry
Gaafar Nimeiry
Gaafar Muhammad an-Nimeiry was the Nubian President of Sudan from 1969 to 1985...
, and Nimeiry pegged the blame on the USSR, thus enhancing Sudanese relations with the West, and were damaged again when Sudan supported the Mujahadeen in Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
when the USSR invaded in 1979
Soviet war in Afghanistan
The Soviet war in Afghanistan was a nine-year conflict involving the Soviet Union, supporting the Marxist-Leninist government of the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan against the Afghan Mujahideen and foreign "Arab–Afghan" volunteers...
. Due to a common enemy
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, diplomatic cooperation between the two countries dramatically got back on track during the late 1990s and early 2000s, when Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Putin
Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin served as the second President of the Russian Federation and is the current Prime Minister of Russia, as well as chairman of United Russia and Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Russia and Belarus. He became acting President on 31 December 1999, when...
was elected the President, and then the Prime Minister of Russia
Prime Minister of Russia
The Chairman of the Government of the Russian Federation The use of the term "Prime Minister" is strictly informal and is not allowed for by the Russian Constitution and other laws....
, and along with Chinese
President of the People's Republic of China
The President of the People's Republic of China is a ceremonial office and a part of State organs under the National People's Congress and it is the head of state of the People's Republic of China . The office was created by the 1982 Constitution...
leader Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao
Hu Jintao is the current Paramount Leader of the People's Republic of China. He has held the titles of General Secretary of the Communist Party of China since 2002, President of the People's Republic of China since 2003, and Chairman of the Central Military Commission since 2004, succeeding Jiang...
opposed UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Peacekeepers in Darfur
Darfur
Darfur is a region in western Sudan. An independent sultanate for several hundred years, it was incorporated into Sudan by Anglo-Egyptian forces in 1916. The region is divided into three federal states: West Darfur, South Darfur, and North Darfur...
. Russia strongly supports Sudan's territorial integrity
Territorial integrity
Territorial integrity is the principle under international law that nation-states should not attempt to promote secessionist movements or to promote border changes in other nation-states...
and opposes the creation of an independent Darfurian state. Also, Russia is Sudan's strongest investment partner [in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
] and political ally in Europe, and Russia has repeatedly and significantly regarded Sudan as an important global ally in the African continent
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. For decades there have been Sudanese collegians studying in Russian universities.
Turkey
Sudan has an embassy in AnkaraAnkara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
. Turkey has an embassy in Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
. Northern Sudan was under the rule of Turkey as a part of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and no political problems exist between the two countries
Although on opposing sides of the Middle East Peace Process
Peace process in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict
The peace process in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict has taken shape over the years, despite the ongoing violence in the Middle East and an "all or nothing" attitude about a lasting peace, "which prevailed for most of the twentieth century"...
spectrum, Turkey and Sudan have in recent years joined forces to end the ongoing conflict between the Israelis and the Palestinians. Both countries have made repeated plea talks during the offensive in Gaza during the beginning of 2009 to Palestinian officials to be of both economic and political aid to the turmoilic state.
United Kingdom
In March 2009, Sudan expelled several major foreign aid agencies including Oxfam and Save the Children from Darfur in response to the extradition request of Omar al-Bashir to answer ICC charges. President al-Bashir accused foreign aid workers of being "spies" and "thieves". Penny Lawrence, Oxfam's international director, said of the ban "It will affect more than 600,000 Sudanese people whom we provide with vital humanitarian and development aid, including clean water and sanitation on a daily basis."Gordon Brown said in response "The humanitarian agencies that are working in Sudan should be allowed to stay there and continue their work."
In April 2009, Oxfam and other aid agencies appealled their ban saying that "The expulsion is already affecting the lives of hundreds of thousands of the very poorest and most vulnerable Sudanese people". Oxfam have denied working for the ICC saying that "We don't have an agreement with the ICC, we are a humanitarian organisation and we are impartial," and "We don't have anything to do with the ICC and we don't have a position on its decision."
Iraq
Sudan has an Embassy in BaghdadBaghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
and Iraq's Embassy is in Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
.
Sudanese-Iraqi relations were and still are very close, Sudan supported Iraq during the Gulf War
Gulf War
The Persian Gulf War , commonly referred to as simply the Gulf War, was a war waged by a U.N.-authorized coalition force from 34 nations led by the United States, against Iraq in response to Iraq's invasion and annexation of Kuwait.The war is also known under other names, such as the First Gulf...
, and following the war, Baghdad
Baghdad
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, as well as the coterminous Baghdad Governorate. The population of Baghdad in 2011 is approximately 7,216,040...
established Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
as a major center for Iraqi intelligence. Iraq and Sudan are connected by remote cultural similarities such as language (both countries speak Arabic
Arabic language
Arabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
, though the two are different in dialect) and religion, both are Muslim
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
(however Sudan is predominantly Sunni, while the majority of Iraq is Shia). Tension between the two countries intensified during the American invasion
2003 invasion of Iraq
The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...
, even though Sudan fiercely opposed the proposal. Ties between Iraq
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
have since improved.
Israel
When the Arab-Israeli warSix-Day War
The Six-Day War , also known as the June War, 1967 Arab-Israeli War, or Third Arab-Israeli War, was fought between June 5 and 10, 1967, by Israel and the neighboring states of Egypt , Jordan, and Syria...
began in June 1967, Sudan declared war on Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. However, in the early 1970s, Sudan gradually shifted its stance and was supportive of the Camp David Accords.
Pakistan
Due to both states sharing the same religionIslam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
, being former British colonies, and refusing to recognize Israel as a legitimate nation, Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
and Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
have shared generally close and warm relations for decades. Both countries are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the Like Minded Group
Like Minded Group
The Like Minded Group is a group of developing countries who organise themselves as block voters in international organizations such as the United Nations and the World Trade Organization....
, and the Group of 77
Group of 77
The Group of 77 at the United Nations is a loose coalition of developing nations, designed to promote its members' collective economic interests and create an enhanced joint negotiating capacity in the United Nations. There were 77 founding members of the organization, but the organization has...
; these relations strengthened when Sudan declared its support for Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani Wars. But because of certain issues however, such as Pakistan's strong relations with the United States, and friendly Sudanese relations with India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, and Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, things between the two countries have reached a complex point. Also, another very important topic which somewhat strains ties between Islamabad
Islamabad
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan and the tenth largest city in the country. Located within the Islamabad Capital Territory , the population of the city has grown from 100,000 in 1951 to 1.7 million in 2011...
and Khartoum
Khartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
is the December 2001 transferral of Al-Jazeera photographer Sami al-Hajj at the hands of the Pakistani government to Guantanamo Bay. Despite this tension, Pakistan and Sudan still engage in collaborative dialogue at OIC summits to improve political stability in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and the Islamic World http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2008-05/13/content_8162843.htm; in other words contact between the two nations still remains friendly. Pakistan is with the people of Sudan on its boundary issues with Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
and Kenya
Kenya
Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east...
.
People's Republic of China
The People's Republic of ChinaPeople's Republic of China
China , officially the People's Republic of China , is the most populous country in the world, with over 1.3 billion citizens. Located in East Asia, the country covers approximately 9.6 million square kilometres...
, is Sudan
Sudan
Sudan , officially the Republic of the Sudan , is a country in North Africa, sometimes considered part of the Middle East politically. It is bordered by Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the northeast, Eritrea and Ethiopia to the east, South Sudan to the south, the Central African Republic to the...
's biggest trade partner. China imports oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
, from Sudan, and Sudan imports low cost items as well as armaments from China. China and Sudan enjoy a very robust and productive relationship in the fields of diplomacy, economic trade, and political strategic. The two nations established diplomatic relations on January 4, 1959 and have since become strongly close global allies. Education also has close ties, as Sudanian students go to China to learn Chinese, and Chinese students go to Sudan to learn Arabic.
United States
On November 3, 1997, the U.S. government imposed a trade embargo against Sudan and a total asset freeze against the Government of Sudan under Executive Order 13067. The U.S. believed the Government of Sudan gave support to international terrorism, destabilized neighboring governments, and permitted human rights violations, creating an unusual and extraordinary threat to the national security and foreign policy of the United States.On June 3, 2008, US - Sudan normalization talks broke down over the issue of conflicts in the oil-producing central region of Abyei.
Malaysia
Malaysia has an embassy in KhartoumKhartoum
Khartoum is the capital and largest city of Sudan and of Khartoum State. It is located at the confluence of the White Nile flowing north from Lake Victoria, and the Blue Nile flowing west from Ethiopia. The location where the two Niles meet is known as "al-Mogran"...
, while Sudan has an embassy in Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur
Kuala Lumpur is the capital and the second largest city in Malaysia by population. The city proper, making up an area of , has a population of 1.4 million as of 2010. Greater Kuala Lumpur, also known as the Klang Valley, is an urban agglomeration of 7.2 million...
. Both countries are members of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, Sudan has brotherly relations with Malaysia.
External links
- North/South Sudan Abyei Boundary Tribunal, including H.E. Former ICJ President Stephen M. SchwebelStephen M. SchwebelStephen Myron Schwebel is an American jurist and expert on international law. He is well known for his separate and dissenting opinions as a Judge of the International Court of Justice 1981-2000 and for his involvement in many cases of the ICSID and Permanent Court of Arbitration.-Biography:Judge...
and H.E. Vice-President Awn Shawkat Al-KhasawnehAwn Shawkat Al-KhasawnehAwn Shawkat Al-Khasawneh is the Prime Minister of Jordan. He was a judge at International Court of Justice beginning in 2000, and re-elected to serve another nine-year term on November 6, 2008.-Career:...
and Final Abyei Boundary Award of 22 July 2009 and UNSG Ban Ki-Moon's Statement Commends the Abyei Award and Hague Final Abyei Ruling Raises Big Peace Hopes in Sudan and BBC and GAR and Justice Portal and SPLM-NPC Joint Statement on the Abyei Award's Implementation and USA, EU and Others Welcome PCA Verdict on Abyei and Ruling on Oil Region Boilsters Peace in Sudan and GOSS and Abyei Boundary Arbitration Homepage - 3 July 2008
- UN SRSG for Sudan Praises Abyei Progress of 11 September 2008
- Parties Deposit Abyei Arbitration Agreement and Designate Agents of 2 October 2008
- 31 October 2008
- Norway's Contribution to the PCA Fund for North and South Sudan of 18 December 2008
- Sudan Applauds U.S. President Obama of 22 January 2009 and the White HouseWhite HouseThe White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
- the Abyei Tribunal's Schedule for the Written Pleadings and Oral Hearing
- Abyei Hearing Schedule, 18-23 April 2009
- Live Webstream
- Abyei Hearing Proceeds Following Expense Row of 17 April 2009
- Oral Hearing of Abyei Arbitration Begin on 18 April 2009
- Anniversary of Comprehensive Peace Agreement Between North and South Sudan of 7 January 2009
- FCO
- Sudanese-U.S. Foreign Relations from the Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives
- BBC of 9 January 2009
See also
- List of diplomatic missions of Sudan