A Turkish offer...
Unlike the diplomatic efforts led by the United States in conjunction with Saudi Arabia, the Turkish mediation is aimed at Burhan and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which have strongly supported the RSF from the beginning, even if they deny it. It would therefore be a negotiation between two government entities. The principle was accepted by Burhan, who thus sees his legitimacy recognized. As for the UAE, they declared: "The United Arab Emirates is fully ready to cooperate and coordinate Turkish efforts and all diplomatic initiatives to end the conflict in Sudan." An open formula that takes care, however, not to make them appear as a belligerent force.
...not necessarily disinterested
Turkey is becoming an important player on the diplomatic scene. It emerged as a decisive force in the fall of the Bashar al-Assad regime in Syria and distinguished itself by a diplomatic agreement resolving the dispute between Somalia and Ethiopia over Somaliland.
Moreover, Recep Erdogan, during the Sudanese revolution, welcomed the Islamist leaders of the former regime of Omar al-Bashir, who made a comeback alongside the SAF against the RSF. The Turkish leader is perfectly accommodating with the principle of political Islamism.
In addition to giving it stature on the international scene, leading the peace mediation is also a way for the Ottoman power to position itself as a major economic player for the future reconstruction of the country.
Marginalizing revolutionary forces
The Turkish offer is made possible by the growing discredit of the RSF, which, during its territorial conquests, carried out ethnic cleansing with an unprecedented ferocity, reminiscent of the massacres that took place in Darfur in the early 2000s. Faced with such violence against the population, the armed groups that had observed strict neutrality at the beginning of the conflict have for the most part joined the SAF. The latest development is the defection of Salah Jok , senior commander of the Sudan Liberation Army (SLM/A) led by Abdelwahid al-Nur, who joined the SAF with some of its troops.
While Turkish mediation is rather a positive factor for Burhan, it will certainly have harmful effects for the revolutionary forces of Sudan, which remain the only ones capable of providing humanitarian aid to populations in conflict zones. Diplomatic arrangements between states risk being made to the detriment of the social and democratic rights of the populations by putting back in the saddle the men of the former hated government.
9 January 2025
Translated by International Viewpoint from l’Anticapitaliste, issue 736].