Hemetti denies signing deal to operate Port Sudan terminal

March 15, 2022 (PORT SUDAN) – Deputy Chairman of the Sovereign Council Mohamed Hamdan Daglo aka Hemetti denied on Tuesday reports about the signing of an agreement to operate, manage and develop the Port Sudan terminal on the Red Sea.

Hemetti arrived in Port Sudan on Tuesday where thousands of protesters took to the street to reject his visit to the main seaport city.

Upon his arrival, he stated that the purpose of his visit is to see the problems the state and terminal are facing and to seek to address them.

“This will be discussed with the competent authorities, the ministers of the economic sector, and specialists to discuss satisfactory solutions,” he said.

“We did not come to sign an agreement concerning the seaport. We came with the specialists and the governor to deal with the accumulated problems in the coming days,” he further stressed.

The Sudanese official did not explain to which agreement he was referring.

On March 13, the acting Foreign Minister Ali al-Sadiq told reporters after al-Burhan return from Abu Dhabi that the head of the Sovereign Council and Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan agreed to establish strategic economic partnerships in the areas of roads, ports, railways, military cooperation.

During Hemetti’s tour of the terminal, the state governor spoke to reporters saying that Hemetti “Will not give it to the UAE or” before to be interrupted by the deputy-chairman of the Sovereign Council he told him “I did not speak about any country”.

The civilian transitional government in the past dismissed any intention to sign a deal with the UAE’s port operator DP World after reports about this matter.

Sudanese street is not favourable to such a deal because the Gulf country is accused of supporting the coup leaders.

(ST)