Sudan Adopts ‘Jeddah Platform’ as Single Platform for Negotiation

Sudan renewed on Friday its adoption of the Jeddah Platform as the sole proposal for negotiations with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) and affirmed its categorical rejection of any talks outside of Jeddah.
After a joint meeting with the Sovereignty Council in the temporary alternative capital, Port Sudan, the government rejected peace talks outside the Jeddah process, asserting that it is the only platform to "negotiate the war imposed by the rebel militias," referring to the RSF.
The designated Minister of Information, Graham Abdel Gader, explained that the government of Sudan will not sit or negotiate with the Rapid Support Forces on any other platform, asserting that any claims or rumors about online negotiations or any other place are "false and baseless."
Abdel Gader reiterated that engagements with regional or international actors must occur within the Jeddah framework.
The joint meeting was chaired by Army Commander Lt-Gen Abdul Fattah Al-Burhan and attended by his deputy, Malik Aqar, along with other members, including Lt-Gen Shamseddine Kabashi and Ibrahim Jaber.
The Minister of Information said the meeting addressed the "government's priorities," the 2024 federal budget, and the efforts to achieve peace and protect citizens.
The meeting also discussed resolving what he described as "rebellion," asserting the need for RSF rebels to leave the homes of citizens and the government, service, and other institutions they occupied.
Observers suggested that these statements hint at an imminent return to the Jeddah platform, which has been suspended for months.
- Non-adherence
Last May, Jeddah hosted the Saudi-US initiative for talks between the Sudanese army and the Rapid Support Forces, which led to the signing of the Jeddah Declaration stipulating the protection of civilians and private and public facilities and refraining from using them for military purposes.
However, the two parties did not adhere to the agreement and returned to negotiations again in October last year.
The new round was met with intransigence from both sides, forcing the mediators, namely Riyadh and Washington, to suspend the negotiations.
The dispute between the two warring parties focused on the "Rapid Support" adherence to the necessity of arresting Islamist leaders of the former regime headed by Omar al-Bashir, who was released from prison.
The army insisted on the need for the Rapid Support Forces to leave the cities it occupied.
- IGAD Summit 41
After the failure of the Jeddah negotiations, the Intergovernmental Authority for Development (IGAD) initiated African mediation and assigned, in June 2023, a quartet committee headed by Kenya, with the membership of South Sudan, Djibouti, and Ethiopia, for the negotiations.
Khartoum rejected the Kenyan presidency, claiming Kenyan President William Ruto sided with the Rapid Support Forces.
IGAD held a direct meeting between Burhan and RSF chief Hamdan Dagalo. But the Authority later postponed the meeting, citing "technical reasons."
Shortly after, Burhan made a surprise visit to Kenya, during which he held meetings with President Ruto and agreed on an emergency summit of presidents to establish a framework for the Sudanese dialogue.
In December, the IGAD 41st Extraordinary was held in Djibouti in the presence of Burhan and Dagalo. Interlocutors agreed to end the war without conditions and called for the postponed meeting between the two leaders.
The Sudanese Foreign Ministry rejected the summit's final statement, and Burhan refused to meet Dagalo.
- IGAD Summit 42
The Sudanese army boycotted the 42nd emergency IGAD summit, which was held in Uganda in January, in protest against RSF "Hemedti's" participation.
However, the summit continued its work in the absence of Sudan and decided to form an "international mechanism" based on the African Union's (AU) vision, which consists of a ceasefire and turning Khartoum into a demilitarized zone.
It also aims to deploy African forces to guard strategic institutions in the capital and combine the visions of the Jeddah platform and IGAD.

France’s foreign minister underlined his country’s role in brokering an agreement that ended fighting between Israel and Lebanon’s Hezbollah group alongside the US, saying the deal wouldn’t have been possible without France’s special relationship with its former protectorate.

“It’s a success for French diplomacy and we can be proud,” said the minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, speaking hours after the ceasefire went into effect Wednesday.

“It is true that the United States have a privileged relationship with Israel. But with Lebanon, it’s France that has very old ties, very close ties,” the minister added. “It would not have been possible to envisage a ceasefire in Lebanon without France being involved on the front line.”

France will be involved in monitoring the ceasefire, Barrot noted, with 700 French soldiers deployed as part of the 10,000-strong United Nations peacekeeping force, known as UNIFIL, that has been patrolling the border area between Lebanon and Israel for nearly 50 years.

The minister said France will also work to strengthen Lebanese troops that will deploy in the south of the country as part of the ceasefire, although he didn’t specify what that might include.

Sudan Adopts ‘Jeddah Platform’ as Single Platform for Negotiation