Germany suspends aid to Sudan due to the coup

MADRID, October 27 (European press) –

And German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas had announced, on Wednesday, that the European country would suspend its aid to Sudan, which is coordinated by Berlin within the framework of international obligations, if the coup was not put to an “immediate end”.

“If it is not ended immediately, the military coup will have serious consequences for the international commitment that Germany has supported and coordinated in recent years (…) Germany will not continue to support it under these circumstances,” Maas said. A statement issued by his portfolio.

The head of German diplomacy stressed that Berlin “maintains close contact” with its partners “with the aim of finding a common path” regarding this support, which was launched at a conference on Sudan held in the German capital in June 2020.

At that meeting, more than 50 countries and international organizations expressed their “strong support” for Khartoum in political and financial affairs, and allocated about $1.8 billion (more than 1.5 billion euros) to the African country.

Since then, the German government has overseen the implementation of the outcomes of the conference as part of the informal Friends of Sudan group, which was created at the initiative of the European country in June 2019 and is composed of various members of the European Union. The United States, as well as by the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and countries in the region. Specifically, this group held a conference call on the situation in Sudan on Tuesday.

In addition, since the meeting in Berlin, a Sudanese social program has been launched to mitigate the impact of economic reforms, in cooperation with the World Bank, as well as an important boost to the country’s debt relief process.

The ministry noted that Germany’s cooperation in the African country also extends to the United Nations Integrated Transitional Assistance Mission in Sudan (UNITAMS), to which it provides financial and personnel assistance.

Accordingly, Germany’s aid to Sudan in all these areas depends on the coup led by the President of the Sudanese Sovereign Council Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, which took place on Monday, although Maas stressed that “the Sudanese people and Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdok continue to rely on the support” of Berlin.

“The military coup in Sudan is a catastrophic event. It puts the country in a dangerous situation and raises questions about the future of a democratic and peaceful Sudan, a goal for which the international community is working,” the German Foreign Minister lamented. He. She.

Maas “strongly” denounced the army’s actions, including the arrests, such as that of the prime minister, who was finally released on Tuesday. He also rejected the “violent measures” against the participants in the “democracy” protests in the country.

In this regard, the German minister stressed that “Major General Al-Burhan and his supporters must not allow the path of democracy to be obstructed,” calling for the release of the remaining detainees and “the cancellation of the dismissal of the interim government led by him.” by civilians” – Al-Burhan dissolved the Transitional Sovereignty Council and the Transitional Government.

The current situation comes in the wake of a mid-September coup attempt, according to the transitional authorities, led by a group of armed forces officers allegedly linked to Omar Hassan al-Bashir.

The transitional authorities were formed after an agreement between the former Military Council, which appeared after the 2019 coup, and various civil organizations and opposition political formations. This government initiated a series of social and economic reforms and reached a peace agreement with important rebel groups in Darfur and other parts of the country.

However, the September attempt led to the exchange of criticism and accusations between civilian and military elements, which deepened the political crisis, including Al-Burhan’s demands to dissolve the government, which led to the outbreak of confrontational demonstrations in recent days in favor of the transition. authorities and the army.