Highlights of the AU’s APSA Meetings in Cairo: Ceasefire, Aid Delivery, Unification of Platforms, and Sudanese Dialogue

Cairo – Almohagig: Sabah Musa

After meeting with the Chairman of the Sovereignty Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, and several political forces and civil society organisations in Port Sudan, the African Union Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) delegation, in its quest for a solution to the war in Sudan, headed to Cairo. Over the past two days, the delegation has met with Sudanese political forces in the Egyptian capital. The delegation also met with the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, for further coordination and to listen to different opinions to formulate a comprehensive vision for the African Union to solve the crisis in Sudan.

Meeting with the Forces of the Movement

The high-level APSA delegation met with a Forces of the National Movement delegation led by Dr. Tajani Sisi. According to a statement issued by the Forces of the National Movement about the meeting, they presented their vision for solving the Sudanese crisis, focusing on military, humanitarian, political, social, and external aspects. The ASPA delegation welcomed the proposal presented by the Forces of the National Movement as a diagnosis of the political crisis, ending the war, and addressing its effects. They also presented their proposal for a comprehensive and detailed national document for consensus and managing the transitional period to build the modern Sudanese state.

According to the statement, the APSA delegation confirmed its agreement with the Forces of the National Movement on the necessity of a comprehensive Sudanese dialogue without exclusion, emphasising the importance of addressing the historical roots of the crisis. The APSA delegation also reiterated its close efforts with all Sudanese parties to reach a comprehensive settlement. Both sides stressed the importance of continuing negotiations in the Jeddah forum, with the necessity of adhering to what has been agreed upon and signed to cease fire, end the war, and deliver humanitarian aid to those affected and impacted by the war without restrictions.

The Forces of the National Movement also emphasised the importance of unifying initiatives and the need for regional and international mechanisms to be unbiased towards all parties.

Addressing the Roots Causes

Dr. Tajani Sisi, head of the Forces of the National Movement, explained that they met with the APSA delegation yesterday, “Tuesday,” and that the Forces of the National Movement presented their vision on how to solve the crisis in Sudan to the APSA delegation. Sisi told “Almohagig” that the Sudanese crisis has been ongoing since independence, and its settlement has faced challenges over the past decades. He added that the crisis has remained unresolved, and it is necessary to address its roots and solve it in the transitional period. He further emphasised the importance of continuing the Jeddah forum and considering what was agreed upon in its last meeting. He stated that if the parties do not implement the Jeddah outcomes, there is no point in continuing the forum despite its importance. He pointed out the existence of a crisis of trust among the various political forces, stating that there is a division among these forces. He noted the presence of coordination of civil forces “Tagadum” supported regionally and internationally, considering that they seek to reproduce the crisis and the Framework Agreement. He also stated that Tagadum seeks to exclude others, emphasising the necessity of holding a Sudanese conference without exclusion, as the main reason is political. He said it is necessary for regional and international efforts to solve the political crisis to continue in parallel with the Jeddah forum, emphasising that regional interventions are hindering rapid solutions and that there is a multiplicity of forums creating confusion among the parties. He called for the presence of an umbrella from the African Union, the Arab League, and the United Nations, in addition to regional countries that have remained neutral towards all parties, seeking peace, pointing out the shortcomings of the international community in providing humanitarian aid to refugees and displaced persons.

Sisi added, “We asked the APSA delegation to give this matter importance,” indicating that the APSA delegation agreed with the views of the Forces of the National Movement. He said, “The crisis cannot be solved except through a comprehensive meeting without exclusion,” emphasising the need to communicate with regional and international organisations.

The Seriousness of the APSA Delegation

Mutasim Al-Fahl, Deputy Head of the Political Committee of the Democratic Bloc, stated that the bloc, led by Jaafar El Mirghani, met with the APSA delegation today, Wednesday. Al-Fahl told “Almuhagig” that the continuation of meetings between the APSA delegation and the bloc in Port Sudan, under the leadership of Dr Jibril Ibrahim and several bloc leaders, confirms the seriousness of the African Union in opening up to everyone at this stage. He added that we presented our vision to the delegation on resolving the crisis, pointing out that the start of high-level APSA delegation meetings from Port Sudan indicates that it is continuing to engage with all forces.

Its presence in Egypt also shows that it will also engage with neighbouring countries and the Arab League. He continued that this emphasises the need to engage with regional organisations, emphasising the Arab contribution to the solution, praising the APSA delegation’s efforts in these movements, and affirming the cohesion of the Democratic Bloc and the consensus of all its components. He denied rumours of problems within the Bloc and allegations of decision-making kidnapping. We emphasised our openness to everyone without exclusion to the APSA delegation. We also affirmed our support for the armed forces, representing the social fabric. He said, “We continue our efforts to resolve the Sudanese crisis. We have taken practical steps to resolve the Sudanese dispute in Juba, and we have been in contact with the African Union and visited it last August. Our meeting with the APSA delegation was fruitful, where we emphasised the need to cease fire, the necessity of delivering humanitarian aid, and the urgent need for a Sudanese dialogue.” Humanitarian Situation At the same time, the Secretary-General of the Arab League, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, met yesterday “Tuesday” with the high-level African APSA delegation concerned with Sudan, which is affiliated with the African Union. During the meeting, Aboul Gheit discussed all aspects of the ongoing Sudanese crisis, which has been going on for more than ten months. He stressed the need to quickly reach an agreement on a ceasefire to save Sudan, which has suffered infrastructure damage, especially in the capital Khartoum due to the ongoing fighting, as well as to save the deteriorating humanitarian situation, which has turned millions of Sudanese into refugees and displaced persons.

Student Affairs

The APSA delegation also met with several Sudanese university presidents in Cairo and discussed the situation of university students following the suspension of studies for nearly a year and the extent of the damage suffered by universities due to the attacks by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) rebels.

AU Committee

It is worth mentioning that the AU appointed a high-level delegation of three African members in mid-January to work on resolving the conflict in Sudan. The committee members included Mohamed Ben Chambas, the African Union’s Special Representative for Disarmament, Simeon Ndayiragije, former Vice President of Rwanda, and Francisco Madeira, former African Union Special Representative to Somalia. The AU explained that the APSA delegation members will work with all parties involved in the Sudanese crisis to ensure a comprehensive process to restore peace and stability in Sudan.