Abu Dhabi extending a helping hand to Khartoum

Mohamed Abdelghaffar

The coronavirus pandemic has had its heavy toll on the world economy. Nevertheless, the pandemic has not held the United Arab Emirates back from offering food and medical supplies to countries around the world, including Sudan.

Rescue

Even before the coronavirus outbreak, Sudan suffered major economic and political problems, following the popular uprising that brought down the regime of longtime president Omar Hassan al-Bashir in April 2019.

The coronavirus is compounding the problems of this Arab country. Sudan has so far reported 4,521 coronavirus infections and 233 deaths. About 816 people recovered from the disease, the Sudanese Ministry of Health said on May 29.

The UAE was quick to offer support to Sudan. It sent a shipment containing 11 tons of medical supplies to the country. The supplies will help over 11,000 Sudanese healthcare workers carry out their duties and get over this crisis.

The Ambassador of the UAE to Sudan, Hamad Mohammed Humaid al-Junaibi, said the supplies bespeak UAE support to Sudan in the face of the pandemic.

“We want to back those standing on the frontline of Sudan’s fight against the coronavirus,” al-Junaibi said.

The UAE sent the supplies to Sudan a few days after the Abu Dhabi Development Fund sent 75 million dirhams in medical supplies to Sudan.

It said in a statement on May 5 that it had already dispatched 135 tons of medical supplies to Sudan.

Other shipments will be sent to the country in the coming days, the fund said.

Aid package

The aforementioned supplies are part of an aid package declared by Abu Dhabi in April 2019.

It said it would give Sudan a total of $1.5 billion in aid to prop up the economy of the Arab country.

This aid is not new to relations between the two countries. In August 2019, the Emirates Red Crescent sent 100 tons of humanitarian aid to support the victims of flash floods that happened in the country.

Qatari fears

The regime of longstanding Sudanese president Omar Hassan al-Bashir was instrumental in the implementation of Qatar’s agenda in Sudan.

This was why Qatar opposed the protests that erupted in Sudan and led to the downfall of al-Bashir’s regime.

In January 2019, Doha paid $1 billion to al-Bashir to help him overcome the economic crisis in his country.

This was probably why Sudan’s transitional military council took a number of measures, following al-Bashir’s ousting, including the closure of the office of the Qatari news channel, al-Jazeera.

Now, Qatar grits its teeth in anger as it views the ongoing rapprochement between Sudan and the UAE.