Sudan making efforts to exit U.S. terror list

Nahla Abdelmonem

The Sudanese Transitional Council works had to erase the legacy of ousted president Omar al-Bashir whose policies caused Sudan to be included in an American list of terrorism.

This has caused massive devastation to the economy of Sudan, a resource-rich country.

Efforts

On January 28, Sudanese Foreign Minister Asmaa Abdullah held a meeting with United States Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Tibor Nagy to discuss this issue.

The Sudanese minister said her country has started a new course of work for stability and serious cooperation with all institutions to achieve the goals of the Sudanese revolution.

Sudan was included in the United States terror list in 1993, against the background of accusations that it offered refuge to al-Qaeda’s founder Osama bin Laden.

In December 2019, Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok said he had received pledges from American officials for reassessing his country’s situation in preparation for removing it from the list.

Removing Sudan from the list, he said, would contribute to improving Sudan’s economic conditions through the attraction of investments. U.S. officials meeting Hamdok in Washington during his visit to the American capital said the same thing.

Action

Arab states do their best to back Sudan’s efforts in this regard. In September 2019, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi called at the United Nations General Assembly for removing Sudan from the U.S. terror list.

On January 23, Saudi Minister of State for African Affairs Ahmed al-Qatan asked Washington to remove Sudan from the list.

Ramifications

Sudan’s presence in the list has had serious consequences for the Sudanese economy. The list prevents Sudan from receiving foreign aid. It disqualifies the country from applying for loans from international institutions. The list also denies Sudan the right to procure arms from other countries and negatively affects its reputation as a destination for international investments.