Sudan Government Turns Away from US-Sponsored Peace Talks in Switzerland

On Sunday, the Sudanese government declared it would not be attending the US-sponsored peace negotiations set to start in Switzerland this week. The choice savers hopes of ending the civil war that has tore across the nation for the past 15 months.

A delegation from Sudanese government visited US officials in Jeddah over the weekend in Saudi Arabia. The discussions revolved on an invitation to the Geneva negotiations, but the Sudanese administration finally turned down. Notwithstanding this, the administration has not completely ruled out the idea of taking part in upcoming negotiations meant to settle the dispute between the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

The administration indicated a wish for guarantees that the conversations will mostly center on the execution of the Jeddah Agreement, inked in May to support national humanitarian projects. Moreover, the government underlined that any conversations have to involve representatives from all spheres of government, not only the military. It also objected to the peace negotiations including fresh observers or assistants.

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With an aim of attaining a truce and enabling the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Sudanese population, the United States has apparently defined the Geneva negotiations as essentially military in character.

Conversely, the RSF has expressed its readiness for attending the Geneva negotiations. Past peace treaties between the two warring factions, however, have not been able to bring about long-lasting harmony. More than 15,000 people have died and almost 11 million others have been displaced from the continuous fighting in Sudan.