Musings From Abroad

US wants UAE, others to cease support for Sudan’s warring parties

Published

8 months ago

May 1, 2024

The United States wants all countries, including the United Arab Emirates, to stop helping the warring sides in Sudan, the U.S. ambassador to the UN said on Monday, warning that a “crisis of epic proportions is brewing.”

A year ago, there was a war in Sudan between the Sudanese Army (SAF) and the rebel Rapid Support Forces (RSF). This caused the biggest refugee crisis in the history of the world. In the past few days, the U.N. has been worried that the RSF might soon attack al-Fashir in Sudan’s North Darfur area.

The US continued to put sanctions on people who are linked to the Sudan issue. In September, the US also put sanctions on two companies, one of which was based in Russia. Washington has always said that the groups are making things less stable in Sudan, even though the war has killed thousands of civilians and forced millions to leave their homes.

In the same way, the UK has punished at least six businesses related to the fight between the army led by General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, who is also the head of Sudan’s transitional government’s Sovereign Council, and army troops loyal to General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo, who is the deputy leader of the council and is in charge of the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF).

Experts, residents, and aid groups say the fight for al-Fashir, which has a long history as a power centre, could go on longer, make race tensions worse in the area that began 20 years ago, and spread to the border between Sudan and Chad.

“As I’ve said before, history is repeating itself in Darfur in the worst possible way,” U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Linda Thomas-Greenfield told reporters on Monday, adding that al-Fashir was “on the precipice of a large-scale massacre.”

The U.N. says that around 300,000 people were killed in Darfur in the early 2000s when “Janjaweed” militias, from which the RSF grew, helped the army put down a revolt by mostly non-Arab groups. The International Criminal Court wants to bring charges against Sudanese leaders for crimes against humanity and murder.

This month, top U.N. officials told the Security Council that the lives of about 800,000 people in al-Fashir are in “extreme and immediate danger” because violence is getting worse and could “unleash bloody intercommunal strife throughout Darfur.”

In the huge western part of Darfur, Al-Fashir is the only big city that is not controlled by the RSF. Last year, the RSF and its partners took over four more Darfur state capitals. They were blamed for killing non-Arab groups based on their race and other wrongdoings in West Darfur.

“We do know that both sides are receiving support – both with weapons and other support – to fuel their efforts to continue to destroy Sudan and yes, we have engaged with the parties on that including with our colleagues from the UAE,” Thomas-Greenfield said.

It is said that the conflict has forced more than 3 million people to leave their homes and that thousands have died.

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Musings From Abroad

Swiss company Mercuria partners Zambia’s IDC in new metals trading firm

Published

18 hours ago

December 21, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

According to a statement released by Swiss commodities trader, Mercuria, on Thursday, it has established a metals trading arm with Zambia, the second-largest producer of copper in Africa.

The trading unit is jointly owned by Mercuria and an arm of Zambia’s Industrial Development Company (IDC), and its purpose is to allow Zambia to engage directly in the minerals trading market.

The joint venture “envisages the establishment of a vehicle to market and trade Zambian copper by mutual leverage,” according to a statement from Cornwell Muleya, the CEO of IDC.

The southern African nation wants to increase copper output to roughly 3 million metric tonnes within the next ten years, and in 2023, it produced roughly 698,000 tonnes of copper, down from 763,000 metric tonnes the year before.

In June, the Zambian government announced that it would establish a minerals trading unit.

Investors including First Quantum Minerals and Barrick Gold are ramping up production, with output set to receive a further boost once Vedanta Resources’ Konkola Copper Mines restart activity.

“Our joint venture with IDC marks a significant milestone for Zambia as it positions itself more strategically in the global minerals market,” Kostas Bintas, Mercuria’s global head of metals and minerals, said in the statement.

Musings From Abroad

Blinken to reveal UN Sudan funding additions

Published

2 days ago

December 20, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Additional financing for humanitarian aid to Sudan and initiatives to strengthen civil society in the nation, where a conflict has killed tens of thousands of people and displaced millions, will be announced by U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken at the United Nations on Thursday.

Blinken will make many announcements when he leads a UN Security Council meeting on Sudan on Thursday, which will centre on humanitarian aid and civilian protection, Deputy U.S. Representative to the UN Ned Price told reporters on Wednesday.

According to Price, the announcements would include more money for humanitarian help, initiatives to strengthen civil society, and the return of democracy.

“Sudan, unfortunately, has risked becoming a forgotten conflict,” Price said.

“So part of the reason the secretary … opted to convene a signature event on this very topic is to make sure it remains in the spotlight,” Price said.

For almost 18 months, the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces and Sudan’s army have been engaged in combat, resulting in a severe humanitarian crisis that has forced over 12 million people from their homes and made it difficult for U.N. organisations to provide aid.

A power struggle between the RSF and the Sudanese Armed Forces preceded a planned shift to civilian administration, which sparked the conflict in April 2023.

Although the army declined to join this year’s U.S.-mediated peace negotiations in Geneva, the warring parties did pledge to increase assistance access, which prevented any movement towards a ceasefire.

Price stated that before President Joe Biden’s term ends next month, the United States would keep collaborating with allies to enhance humanitarian access in Sudan and eventually end hostilities.

“We are going to leave nothing on the field in our efforts to work with allies, with partners, with the Sudanese stakeholders themselves, on the issues that matter most – humanitarian access, the provision of humanitarian assistance, ultimately, the process by which we can work to get to a cessation of hostilities, which is most urgently needed,” he said.