Sudan snubs calls to condemns Russian invasion of Ukraine

February 28, 2022 (KHARTOUM) – Sudan’s military-led Sovereign Council called on Monday for dialogue to resolve the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, ignoring calls by the European Union and Troika to condemn the Russian invasion.

In a regular meeting on Monday headed by Gen Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, the Council discussed the Russian-Ukrainian war.

“The council affirmed Sudan’s position in support of dialogue as a means to resolve the crisis between Russia and Ukraine,” said the Council’s Spokeswoman Salma Abdel-Jabbar, after the meeting.

“Sudan calls for a diplomatic solution to end the crisis and supports the ongoing efforts between the two countries,” Abdel Jabbar further said. She was referring to the ceasefire talks between Russia and Ukraine that failed to make a breakthrough on Monday.

The European Union and the Troika envoys to Sudan requested the Sudanese government on Sunday to condemn the Russian aggression on Ukraine and to support a resolution calling for the immediate withdrawal of the Russian troops to be adopted by the UN General Assembly this week.

In Geneva, Sudan abstained from voting in favour of a request to the Human Rights Council to hold an urgent debate on the “situation of human rights in Ukraine stemming from the Russian aggression”.

Commenting on this abstention, U.S. Congressman Dan Kildee, a Democrat, said that Sudan must publicly condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine if it wants to be recognized as a member of the international community.

“Sudan’s recent abstention at UN HumanRights (Council) and Gen Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo’s recent visit to Moscow are very troubling,” Kildee added in a tweet posted on Monday.

The Ukrainian crisis has contributed to widening gaps between the international community and the coup leaders in Sudan who sought to convince major Western powers of their support to the democratic transition.

In their two last protests after the Russian attack on Ukraine, Sudanese youth raised banners expressing their support for the Ukrainian people.

(ST)