Sudan rejects US-backed proposal on conflict resolution
The commander of the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) has rejected a plan presented by the US to end the country’s civil war, describing it as the “worst” proposal yet.
In a statement published on Sunday, Gen. Abdel Fattah al-Burhan said the proposal – presented through Massad Boulos, a senior adviser to US President Donald Trump on Arab and Middle Eastern affairs – would effectively abolish the armed forces’ role, dissolve the security services, and leave the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in control of their current areas.
The Northeast African nation has been engulfed in a brutal conflict for more than two years.
Sudan descended into chaos in April 2023 when fighting erupted between the national army (Sudanese Armed Forces, SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This occurred after months of tension between their commanders, army generals Abdel Fattah al-Burhan and Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo ‘Hemedti’, respectively, over a planned transition to civilian rule. What began in the capital, Khartoum, as a power struggle has devastated the country, killing tens of thousands and displacing millions.
Regional and international peace efforts, including African Union mediation and Saudi–US talks in Jeddah, have repeatedly stalled. Sudanese officials have named Colombians and Ukrainians among mercenaries backing the RSF against the army. Officials have also accused Ukraine and the United Arab Emirates of involvement and recently claimed the European Union has an “incomplete understanding of the complex situation” in the country.
Khartoum has also accused authorities in neighboring Kenya of backing the RSF and has broken ties with the East African grouping IGAD amid mistrust of regional mediation. In July, TASIS, a political coalition aligned with the paramilitary, announced the formation of a rival government months after its members signed a charter in Nairobi. It named Gen. Dagalo as chairman of a 15-member presidential council, a move rejected by the UN and AU.
Al-Burhan claimed that if the mediation continued along its current path, it would be seen as biased. The commander also accused the US envoy as speaking as if he wanted to impose conditions on the SAF, adding that “we fear that Massad Boulos will be an obstacle to the peace that all the people of Sudan seek.”
The statement came shortly after Trump announced on Wednesday that he would personally join efforts to resolve the conflict. The US president stated that Washington, with his involvement, had already helped settle several global disputes, including between India and Pakistan.
On September 12, the ‘Quartet’ of the US, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Egypt unveiled a proposal outlining a three-month humanitarian pause in Sudan, followed by a ceasefire, and a nine-month transition toward civilian rule.
Al-Burhan also stated that he had told Boulos that the proposal is “unacceptable,” stressing the importance of adopting a roadmap put forward by the Sudanese government. “No one in Sudan will accept the presence of these rebels or their inclusion as part of any future solution,” he added.
Sudanese Foreign Minister Muhieldin Salim has said Sudan is not officially working with the Quartet, arguing the group lacks an international mandate. The Quad mechanism “was not issued by a decision from the [UN] Security Council or any international organization,” he noted, as quoted by the Sudan Tribune.
