Sudanese seaports

Colors of Life

Salah Omar Al-Sheikh

Grey: For a long time, the Red Sea coast has been the focal point of various countries that aspire to control global trade and strategic seaports that are economically and militarily required. It could be a site for military bases for major powers that seek to have a site on the Red Sea coast, and the two major powers, America and Russia, are competing for this matter. It is no secret to anyone that the accord signed between Sudan and Russia to allocate a supply station for Russian ships crossing international waters via the Red Sea, and how America and its allies resisted this agreement and sought by all means to prevent its implementation. Rather, it is one of the causes for this war.

In the same vein, an agreement was reached with Turkey to modernize the port of Suakin and restore the Turkish antiquities in Suakin. It is known that the port of Suakin was established by the Ottoman Empire during its rule of Sudan, and therefore it represents a part of its history that it is trying to revive and preserve its monuments. Perhaps this is an entry point to control the port of Suakin as part of its ambitions in the international game, although it denies this.

The Rapid Support Forces’ (RSF) advisor, who broke away from it, said that the reason for the war was Hemeidti’s planning in favor of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to control all Sudanese Red Sea ports by establishing new ports and controlling Portsudan. Al-Burhan rejected these projects, which angered Hemeidti and the UAE, so they ignited the war because of them. It was preceded by the Abu Omama Port project, which sparked intense controversy and did not continue.

Lieutenant General Ibrahim Jabir, in his interview with Sudanese Echoes, disclosed an important point that blocks the way to all these ambitions, which is to develop Portsudan Port and deepen the shipyards to receive larger ships, as well as rehabilitating and expanding Suakin Port and the rest of the other ports, in order to close the door to the greedy and brokers who do not care about the national interests, but rather work to sell everything that can be sold without taking into account the national interest and the negative effects that result from this matter.