Sudan sever ties with the UAE and the latter doesn’t recognize the decision
Sudan announced on Tuesday the severing of diplomatic relations with the United Arab Emirates and the withdrawal of its embassy and consulate, describing it as an aggressive state and accusing it of supporting the Rapid Support Forces militia, against which the Sudanese army is waging a war that has entered its third year.
A statement issued by the Sudanese Security and Defense Council stated that Sudan has also decided to withdraw the Sudanese embassy and consulate general from the United Arab Emirates.
The statement, published by the official Sudanese News Agency, indicated that the entire world has been following for more than two years the crime of aggression against Sudan’s sovereignty, territorial integrity, and the security of its citizens by the United Arab Emirates, through its local agent, the terrorist, rebellious Rapid Support Forces militia, and its political backer.
The statement explained that the UAE when it became certain of the defeat of its local agent, who was defeated by our armed forces (the Sudanese Armed Forces), the legitimate institution entrusted with defending the nation and preserving its resources, it escalated its support and devoted more of its capabilities to supplying the rebellion with advanced strategic weapons.
The statement considered that these weapons continued to target vital facilities and service installations in the country, most recently targeting oil and gas depots, Port Sudan port and airport, power stations, and hotels, endangering the lives and property of millions of civilians, threatening regional and international security, particularly the security of the Red Sea.
The statement indicated that in line with the text and spirit of Article 51 of the United Nations Charter, which gives states the right to defend themselves, the State of Sudan reserves the right to respond to aggression by all means to preserve the country’s sovereignty and territorial integrity, and to ensure the protection of civilians and the continued delivery of humanitarian aid.
Sudan’s decision to sever ties with the UAE comes after the International Court of Justice rejected a lawsuit filed by the Sudanese government last month accusing the UAE of “complicity in genocide”.
The UAE previously denied Sudan’s accusations, describing them as a political farce and a cynical propaganda ploy, and said the Sudanese government’s lawsuit was another attempt to divert attention from this disastrous war.
On this regard, the UAE said Wednesday it doesn’t recognize the decision by the Sudanese military-linked government to sever diplomatic ties with Abu Dhabi, which it accuses of arming the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in the two-year-old war.
According to Afraa al Hamli, Director of the Strategic Communications Department at the UAE Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said, “The UAE doesn’t recognize the decision of the Port Sudan Authority,” the temporary seat of the Sudanese government, “because this authority doesn’t represent the legitimate government of Sudan and its generous people”.
The War erupted in Sudan in mid-April 2023, sparked by a power struggle between army commander Abdel Fattah al Burhan and his former deputy, the commander of the Rapid Support Forces, Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo.
The war has left tens of thousands dead and wounded, displaced 13 million people, and caused widespread famine in several areas.
The United Nations has deemed the country the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.
