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Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said Monday that the United States will seek to end UN sanctions against Sudan over the conflict in Darfur while the new government makes peace.
The pledge is another sign that the United States is eager to reward Sudan after it agreed to recognize Israel, a decision made at the behest of President Donald Trump’s administration when it moved to remove Sudan from the list of countries sponsoring terrorism. .
Pompeo said the yearlong civilian-backed government had made “substantial improvements” in human rights, including in Darfur, the parched western region where the former dictatorship carried out a scorched-earth military campaign.
“The United States is committed to working with the Sudanese government and our international partners to identify circumstances that could result in the lifting of sanctions related to the Darfur conflict at the earliest opportunity,” Pompeo said in a statement.
“We have already started consultations at the UN with this goal in mind.”
Sudan’s new government signed a historic agreement a month ago with rebels who have been active in Darfur, as well as the southern states of Blue Nile and South Kordofan.
In 2005, the UN Security Council imposed an arms embargo, a travel ban, and a freeze on the assets of anyone who had inhibited peace efforts in Darfur.
The then US administration of George W. Bush had supported international action on Darfur, calling it genocide against the predominantly black population of the region.
Sudan has been eager for international sanctions to be removed, especially the designation of the United States as a state sponsor of terrorism, which has severely hampered investment.
Trump began the process to remove Sudan from the list after the new government agreed to recognize Israel and deposited $ 335 million in compensation for the survivors and families of the victims of the attacks dating back to the reign of dictator Omar al -Bashir, who had welcomed Al-Qaeda.
