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Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed met with Sudanese military leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan in the interim administrative capital of Port Sudan on Tuesday, becoming the first foreign leader to visit him since the start of the war between Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Observers see the move as the latest effort by the international community to persuade Sudan’s army to return to negotiations to end the country’s disastrous conflict.
In December 2023, Abiy received RSF leader Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo in Addis Ababa, an official visit he framed as part of his efforts to promote peace in Sudan.
Peace talks hosted by Saudi Arabia and the United States in Jeddah aimed at brokering a ceasefire stalled last year. Several attempts to bring the military back to the negotiating table have so far failed to produce a breakthrough.
Photos shared by both sides showed Burhan and Abiy walking hand in hand after the Ethiopian prime minister arrived in Port Sudan. On Twitter, Abiy’s office described the visit as part of efforts to find “sustainable solutions for Sudan’s stability.”
Today’s visit follows an RSF attack last month in the southeastern Sennar state, which pushed the conflict to Sudan’s border with Ethiopia. There are signs that the RSF is moving into Gedaref state, which also hosts Ethiopian refugees.
Abiy’s visit to Port Sudan comes despite past tensions between him and the Sudanese military.
The Sudanese war broke out in April 2023 when months of tensions between General Burhan and his former ally, General Mohammed Dagalo, commander of the Rapid Security Forces, over the mandate and role of their respective forces in Democratic Sudan, turned violent.
The conflict has displaced nearly 10 million Sudanese and killed tens of thousands. It has also created one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises, with millions facing starvation, especially in the western regions of Darfur and Kordofan.
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