Sudan has continued to pursue relations with Moscow following the outbreak of the war in Ukraine. On March 2, 2022, Vice-President of Sudan’s Transitional Sovereignty Council, General Mohamed Hamdan Dagalo (known as General Hemetti), declared Sudan would remain open to building a Russian military base in the Red Sea. These statements followed the conclusion of General Hametti’s visit to Moscow, on 24 February last, at the invitation of the Russian Government. General Hametti was accompanied by a delegation of the Sudanese Business Governance Council, which was formed by General Abdulfattah Al-Burhan. Council members include Minister of Finance Gibril Ibrahim, Minister of Energy and Oil Muhammad Abdullah Mahmoud, Minister of Minerals Muhammad Bashir Abdallah Abu Namou, Acting Undersecretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Ambassador Nader Youssef Al-Tayeb and President of the Federation of Chambers of Commerce Nader Al-Hilali. Several meetings were held with Russian officials, including the Russian Deputy Defense Minister and other officials. This was an indication of the nature of the issues discussed during the visit, which focused on security and economic concerns.

 General Hemetti’s visit, as Vice-President of the Sudanese Sovereignty Council, is the first official visit of its kind since the overthrow of former President Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. The visit comes within the framework of Sudanese and Russian efforts to strengthen bilateral relations.The visit coincided with the Russia-Ukraine War, which broke out on 25 February. 

There was, however, domestic opposition in Sudan to this visit, based on rejection of Russian interference in Sudan’s internal affairs. The Federal Assembly and the Sudanese Professional Alliance, who declared that the visit did not confirm to international norms and diplomatic protocol, and ignored the political situation in Sudan, and the international context in view of the war in Ukraine. They accused army leaders of turning to their traditional ally, Russia, for support, in order to maintain their hold on power, and  to supply  them with arms and ammunition to suppress popular protests against the military coup d’état, in an effort to project international support of the actions of the military.

General Hametti’s visit to Moscow examined ways to strengthen bilateral relations between Sudan and Russia, and the parties agreed on the need to intensify cooperation in various political and military fields, to achieve a number of objectives for both parties, including:

Establishing a Russian military base: Russia invited General Hametti to discuss the establishment of a Russian military base on the Red Sea at Port Sudan, as Khartoum has not yet provided Russia with a conclusive response. The former transitional government headed by Abdullah Hamduk (overthrown last October) had frozen military agreements with Russia and was awaiting the formation of a Legislative Council to decide whether or not to establish a Russian military base on the Red Sea.

Sudanese Chief of Staff, General Muhammad Osman Al Hussein, stated last November that there had not been a full agreement with Russia on the establishment of a naval base in the Red Sea, as there was public opposition, but military cooperation between the two countries would continue. Moscow expressed dismay that the previous agreement signed under President Omar al-Bashir had not been implemented, as President Putin had ratified the establishment of the base last November with a capacity of absorbing nuclear-powered ships.

Strengthening joint military cooperation: Both Moscow and Khartoum are keen to continue military cooperation, which has been confirmed by the presence of Russian military experts in Sudan, as Moscow announced in early 2019. The recent visit by the Sudanese delegation to Moscow is thus part of Russia’s continuing effort to commit Sudan to implementing their bilateral agreements, and in particular, those signed by ousted President Omar al-Bashir in 2017 when Russia was called on to protect Sudan from the US. There are also military cooperation agreement signed in May 2019 after the fall of the Bashir regime, that provides for seven years of military cooperation between Khartoum and Moscow. In light of political and security turmoil in Sudan since the military coup d’état against the transitional authority last October, Moscow has become increasingly concerned about the failure of the current Sudanese authorities to implement these agreements.

Reforming Sudan’s military and security sectors: General Hametti’s visit also came at a time Russia was increasing its demands for the restructuring of security and military apparatus within Sudan. Specifically, the reform of the military includes the integration of the rapid support forces headed by General Hametti into the national Sudanese army, an undertaking that General Hametti refuses to implement. This is a major obstacle to unifying the national army and integrating certain armed groups into its structure. Russia’s demands come in the context of Khartoum’s need to acquire sophisticated Russian weapons, to enhance its military capabilities in the face of security threats, especially the potential for an escalation of terrorist activities from Al Qaeda and ISIS.

Attracting Russian investment: Sudan hopes the visit will garner it economic assistance and persuade Russia to inject more capital to revive the Sudanese economy and lift it out of its current deepening crisis. This explains General Hametti’s emphasis during the visit on opportunities for Russian investments in Sudan’s energy, agriculture, mining and environmental protection, thereby promoting the economic interests and gains of both parties. Thus, during the visit, General Hametti stressed the need to accelerate the implementation of cooperation agreements signed between the two countries’ oil ministries, which encompasses training, capacity-building, and developing electricity generation and nuclear power for peaceful purposes. Moscow promised that a delegation of Russian companies would visit Sudan soon to learn about investment opportunities.

Addressing the country’s wheat needs: Following General Hametti’s visit, Sudan received, through Port Sudan on the Red Sea, 20 thousand tons of wheat under a grant from the Russian Government. This is aimed to alleviate Sudan’s worsening shortage of flour and bread. Despite Moscow’s preoccupation with its military invasion of Ukraine, Moscow sent wheat to Khartoum after the latter abstained from voting against Russia. The wheat served as a reward for Khartoum’s support on the one hand, and an attempt to lure Khartoum into implementing the agreement to establish the Russian naval base in the Red Sea on the other.

The visit had political and security implications in view of General Hametti’s position as Vice President of the Transitional Sovereignty Council and Head of the Rapid Support Forces, these include:

Demonstrating support for the current transitional authority: Khartoum is keen to strengthen its relations with Moscow at a time when the Russian Government is demonstrating political support for the current transitional authority headed by the military after the overthrow of Prime Minister Abdullah Hamduk on 25 October of last year, and the failure to form a government of national unity, whereby  General Burhan’s established a  caretaker government until the handover of power to a civilian government following elections scheduled for July 2023. Hametti’s statements during his visit to Russia references Russia’s recent political support for Khartoum in international forums.

 Support for the Russia’s war in Ukraine: General Hametti’s recent visit to Moscow has been interpreted as explicit Sudanese support for Russian military intervention in Ukraine. This is reinforced by Sudan’s abstention on a resolution in the United Nations General Assembly condemning the Russian invasion. Some media outlets have reported statements by General Hametti that confirm his support for Russian recognition of Donetsk and Lugansk’s secession. However, these reports were denied by the Sudanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who explained that the visit was scheduled prior to the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis. The ministry also clarified that Sudan’s position was to call for a cessation of military escalation on both sides, to resort to dialogue, and to settle the crisis by diplomatic means in order to arrive at an appropriate solution acceptable to all parties.

International competition over influence in Sudan: Moscow’s invitation came at the peak of Russian-American rivalry over influence in Sudan, as it can provide an important foothold on the Red Sea and in East Africa. In response to the visit, ambassadors of Western States and the European Union met with the Sudanese Foreign Minister Ali Al-Sadiq in Khartoum, and asked the Sudanese transitional authorities to issue a clear condemnation of Russian violations in Ukraine, and to demonstrate this stance in the UN General Assembly, thereby joining other states condemning the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Indeed, perhaps the UN Secretary-General, Antonio Guterich’s appointment of Sudanese diplomat Amin Awad as UN coordinator for the crisis in Ukraine displays the international community’s desire to attract Sudan, integrating it through the UN, as opposed to allowing Russia an opening to exert its influence.

In summary, General Hametti’s visit to Russia revealed the support of the current transitional regime for the Russian position in the Ukrainian crisis, despite the denial offered by Sudanese foreign affairs. On its part, the Russian Government’s invitation to General Hametti shows Russia’s interest in implementing the military agreement for the establishment of a Russian military base on the Red Sea, in return for investing into the recovery of the Sudanese economy and supporting the continuation of military control during the transitional period.