Saudi Arabia Threatens to Withdraw from Sudan Quartet over Al-Burhan’s US Visa
A report published by The Africa Report on Wednesday said Saudi Arabia had threatened to withdraw from the Sudan Quartet dialogue amid growing tensions over the US position on the Sudan file, particularly after the administration of US President Donald Trump refused to grant President of the Transitional Sovereignty Council (TSC), General Abdel-Fattah Al-Burhan, a visa to enter the United States and attend the UN General Assembly meetings in New York.
The report said the decision by the US administration angered a number of Washington’s allies, as well as the United Nations, noting that the administration’s tougher stance toward Sudan was beginning to affect its relations with parties that the magazine considers essential to efforts to end the ongoing war in Sudan.
According to the report, the tensions threaten to complicate the work of the Sudan Quartet, comprising the United States, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, as diplomatic efforts continue to end the war between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces.
The report noted that the dispute over Al-Burhan’s attendance at the UN meetings comes at a sensitive time for the Sudan diplomatic track, amid differing positions among international and regional actors over how to deal with the two warring parties and the political settlement process.