Eritrea rejects international and regional initiatives to resolve Sudan conflict: Agar
July 9, 2023 (KHARTOUM) – The Vice-President of the Sovereignty Council, Malik Agar, revealed that Eritrea has rejected both international and regional initiatives to resolve the conflict in Sudan.
Agar conveyed this information following his meeting on Saturday with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki as part of a regional tour.
In a statement issued on Sunday, Agar said he provided President Afwerki with a comprehensive overview of Sudan’s current situation, highlighting the war’s political, economic, and humanitarian consequences.
According to Agar, the Eritrean President expressed solidarity with the Sudanese people and asserted that ongoing initiatives were merely political bargaining platforms in which Eritrea chose not to participate.
“The Eritrean president told me (…) that the ongoing initiatives are political bazaars in which Eritrea cannot engage in, emphasizing that the situation in Sudan is an internal matter for Sudanese people and cautioning that external intervention would only exacerbate the complexities,” Agar said.
In a series of tweets posted on Sunday, Agar repeated they discussed the initiatives proposed from within the region, adding, “I appreciated the Eritrean side’s clarity of position since the beginning of the Sudan war”.
Sudan refuses the Kenyan chairmanship of the internationally backed IGAD mediation to end the conflict.
The Eritrean Ministry of Information reported that Agar said that Sudan gives great consideration to the assurance he receives from President Isaias that Eritrea’s border is open for Sudanese refugees fleeing the conflict in their country.
The IGAD quartet group will meet in Addis Ababa on Monday to discuss the way forward with the participation of representatives of the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Saudi Arabia and the United States.
In a statement on Sunday, the State Department confirmed the participation of the Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Molly Phee, in the IGAD meeting.
“She will also meet with Sudanese civilians committed to ending the conflict and restoring democratic governance in Sudan,” added the statement.
(ST)