Sudan conference looks for ways out of the humanitarian catastrophe

Civil war in Sudan

Sudan conference looks for ways out of the humanitarian catastrophe

Can Berlin take steps toward a ceasefire in civil war-torn Sudan? On the Spree it’s about diplomacy, promises of aid and a civil way out of the crisis.

Three years after the start of the civil war in Sudan, top politicians from Europe and Africa as well as representatives of civil groups are making a new attempt to find a peace solution to the bloody conflict. The international Sudan conference in Berlin is also intended to ensure that what the UN says is currently the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, given the wars in Iran and Ukraine, does not fall out of the public eye. A breakthrough towards a ceasefire is not expected.

The third Sudan conference to date, following meetings in Paris and London, is being organized by the Federal Government together with Great Britain, France, the USA and the European and African Union. The event, on the third anniversary of the start of the conflict, consists of a meeting of foreign ministers, a humanitarian conference with funding commitments and a meeting of civilian actors to negotiate a roadmap for peace.

A total of 120 delegations have been invited to the Foreign Office, around 60 of them from civil society. Much is expected in Berlin from the deliberations between civilian representatives from Sudan and exile. It is warned that there is a great danger that military forces would ultimately take power again. There were humanitarian aid commitments worth around two billion euros in Paris and around one billion euros in London. It is hoped that the commitments will land back in the London area.

The civil war in Africa’s third largest country began on April 15, 2023. For three years, the Sudanese government army SAF under de facto ruler Abdel-Fattah al-Burhan and the militia RSF under Mohamed Hamdan Daglo have been fighting bitterly for dominance in the country. The two once seized power together – Daglo was al-Burhan’s deputy.

The country is now largely divided into spheres of control: Since last year, the army has again controlled the largely destroyed capital Khartoum and the east of Sudan. With the capture of the city of Al-Fashir, the RSF has the large Darfur region in the west under control. There it not only has access to supply routes from Chad, Libya and the Central African Republic, but with control over important gold deposits it can also finance arms purchases.

There is currently heavy fighting, especially in the Kordofan region further south. Experts like Alan Boswell from the International Crisis Group see the danger of a permanent division of the country.