Musings From Abroad

UN head slams Sudan’s RSF as Britain seeks Security Council action

Published

1 month ago

November 2, 2024

While Britain announced it would work for a United Nations Security Council resolution on the conflict, which has been going on for more than 18 months, United Nations Secretary-General, Antonio Guterres, has denounced reported attacks on civilians by Sudan’s paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) on Friday.

The world’s largest relocation crisis began in mid-April 2023 when the Sudanese army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces engaged in a power battle ahead of a scheduled handover to civilian administration.

The RSF is mostly to blame for the waves of ethnically motivated violence that have resulted from the current conflict.
According to activists, the RSF massacred at least 124 people in a village in El Gezira State last month, making it one of the bloodiest occurrences of the conflict.

The army is allegedly arming citizens in Gezira, according to the RSF. In the past, the RSF has denied causing harm to civilians in Sudan and blamed renegade actors for the action.

“Reports of large numbers of civilians being killed, detained and displaced, acts of sexual violence against women and girls, the looting of homes and markets and the burning of farms,” a U.N. spokesperson said, horrifying Guterres.

“Such acts may constitute serious violations of international humanitarian law and human rights law. Perpetrators of such serious violations must be held accountable,” U.N. spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.

According to Britain, which took over as the Security Council’s November presidency on Friday, the 15-member council will convene on Sudan on November 12 to talk about “scaling up aid delivery and ensuring greater protection of civilians by all sides.”

“We will be shortly introducing a draft Security Council resolution … to drive forward progress on this,” Britain’s U.N. Ambassador Barbara Woodward told a press conference.

She stated that the draft would concentrate on “developing a compliance mechanism for the warring parties commitments they made on the protection of civilians in Jeddah over a year ago in 2023 and ways to support mediation efforts to deliver a ceasefire, even if we start local ceasefires before moving to a national one.”

For a resolution to be enacted, it must have at least nine votes and not be vetoed by the United States, France, Britain, Russia, or China.

The action was taken because the U.N. and aid organisations’ three-month permission from Sudanese authorities to utilise the Adre border crossing with Chad to provide humanitarian aid to Darfur is about to expire in mid-November.

Sudan’s U.N. Ambassador Al-Harith Idriss Al-Harith Mohamed stated on Monday that the army-backed administration is dedicated to enabling humanitarian supplies throughout the nation, even in areas under RSF control.

Vassily Nebenzia, Russia’s ambassador to the United Nations, stated on Monday that it would be “inappropriate to put pressure on” the Sudanese administration to decide whether the Adre crossing would be open past mid-November.

“We’re categorically opposed to the politicization of humanitarian assistance,” he said. “We believe that any humanitarian assistance should be conducted and delivered solely with the central authorities in the loop.”

Musings From Abroad

France, Nigeria sign agriculture, infrastructure deals

Published

3 days ago

November 30, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Two agreements to improve food security and infrastructure development have been struck between France and Nigeria, while Nigerian lenders, United Bank for Africa (UBA) and Zenith Bank, have expanded their operations into France.

The agreements were signed during President Bola Tinubu’s state visit to Paris, according to Nigeria’s presidential spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, who said on Friday that the agreements included a 300 million euro investment plan to support the development of human capital, healthcare, transportation, agriculture, renewable energy, and critical infrastructure throughout Nigeria.

A letter of intent was signed by French Economy Minister Antoine Armand and Nigerian Finance Minister Wale Edun to enable the investments. Onanuga added in a statement that both countries have promised to simplify trade and investment procedures.

“The two countries committed to forge a strategic relationship in project implementation and enhance mutual trade and cross border services by removing fiscal barriers while protecting labour rights,” a joint statement said.

Zenith Bank opened its doors in Paris in addition to the government-level accords, and UBA is expected to follow after reaching an agreement with French authorities to start business in Paris, according to Onanuga.

Nigeria is the fourth-largest trading partner of France in Africa, behind Morocco, Algeria, and Tunisia, and the top trading partner in sub-Saharan Africa.

Nigeria Exports to France was US$4.26 Billion during 2023, according to the United Nations COMTRADE database on international trade.

Musings From Abroad

Chad terminates defence cooperation with France

Published

3 days ago

November 30, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

France’s influence in Sub-Saharan Africa has suffered a fresh setback as the government of Chad says that it has terminated its defence cooperation agreement with France, potentially leading to the withdrawal of French troops from the Central African nation.

After more than 60 years of independence, Chad, a crucial Western partner in the war against Islamic terrorists in the area, said in a statement that it wants to completely establish its sovereignty.

It stated that it would be allowed to reinterpret its strategic alliances as a result of the 2019 revision to the Defence Cooperation Agreement.

Although Chad has always worked closely with the military forces of Western countries, in recent years it has become more close to Russia.

After being forced to withdraw its soldiers from Mali, Niger, and Burkina Faso due to military coups, the decision represents yet another blow to France’s colonial and historic position in West and Central Africa.

Since then, the military juntas have looked to Russia, which has been developing stronger connections with Chad’s president Mahamat Deby and has mercenaries stationed throughout the Sahel area, a group of nations that stretches from the northwest to the northeast shores of Africa.

“Under the terms of the accord, Chad will respect the modalities of the termination including the necessary deadlines, and will collaborate with French authorities to ensure a harmonious transition,” the statement said.

The French foreign ministry is yet to officially comment on the development.

Although a French envoy to President Emmanuel Macron this week submitted a report with recommendations on how France could scale back its military presence in Chad, Gabon, and Ivory Coast, where it has stationed thousands of troops for decades, there were no signs that Paris had been informed in advance of the decision.

Approximately 1,000 French soldiers and combat aircraft are presently stationed in Chad.

In a further setback for France, Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye stated Thursday in an interview with French state television that French troops should not be stationed in his nation.

He stated that Paris would be the first to know, but he did not specify whether or when French forces would be ordered to depart. There are about 350 French soldiers stationed in Senegal.

The decision to terminate the country’s defence relationship with France should not in any way jeopardise the two nations’ cordial ties, according to a statement from Chad’s foreign ministry.