Sudanese Diplomat Criticizes His Country’s Absence from Paris Conference

Displaced Sudanese children play near tents at a camp in southern Gadaref state for people who fled Khartoum and Jazira states, in war-torn Sudan, on March 20, 2024. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese children play near tents at a camp in southern Gadaref state for people who fled Khartoum and Jazira states, in war-torn Sudan, on March 20, 2024. (AFP)
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Sudanese Diplomat Criticizes His Country’s Absence from Paris Conference

Displaced Sudanese children play near tents at a camp in southern Gadaref state for people who fled Khartoum and Jazira states, in war-torn Sudan, on March 20, 2024. (AFP)
Displaced Sudanese children play near tents at a camp in southern Gadaref state for people who fled Khartoum and Jazira states, in war-torn Sudan, on March 20, 2024. (AFP)

Sudan’s ambassador to France Dr. Khaled Farah expressed his surprise and condemnation at the absence of his government from a conference in Paris that will focus on the situation in his country.

The event, which will take place at the French Foreign Ministry on Monday, is being organized in cooperation with Germany and the European Union, in the absence of official Sudanese representation.

“The conference addresses a matter that concerns an independent and sovereign state. It was arranged without consulting Sudan,” he said, adding that the legitimate government was not invited to participate at any level.

Farah pointed out that the Rapid Support Forces will be “implicitly present and strongly participating in this conference, through political allies and sympathizers... such as the so-called Democratic and Civil Forces (Taqaddum) ... and other non-governmental organizations, civil society groups, and representatives of some political organizations and individuals.”

He expressed alarm that the conference will ultimately be used to prop up the RSF and back it with diplomatic and financial support “under the pretext of concern for the tragedy of the Sudanese people.”

The Sudanese diplomat criticized equating his government with the “rebel Rapid Support militia” - RSF - rejecting some of the common expressions that describe the ongoing war as between “two warring parties” or “the two sides of the conflict.”

“The matter is simply a failed military coup for the purpose of seizing power, with the support and complicity of some regional and international circles,” he remarked.



Ankara: Assad Does Not Want Peace in Syria

Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
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Ankara: Assad Does Not Want Peace in Syria

Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)
Fidan addresses the Planning and Budget Committee of the Turkish Parliament (Turkish Foreign Ministry)

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan has stated that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad is unwilling to pursue peace in Syria and warned that Israel’s efforts to spread war across the Middle East are undermining the environment fostered by the Astana Process.

Fidan emphasized the importance of Russian and Iranian efforts within the framework of the Astana Process to maintain calm on the ground, pointing to ongoing consultations with the US regarding the Syrian crisis.

Speaking during a parliamentary session discussing the 2025 budget of the Foreign Ministry, Fidan reiterated Türkiye’s expectation that the dialogue proposed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan will be approached strategically by the Syrian government, with priority given to the interests of the Syrian people.

Regarding Erdogan’s invitation to Assad for a meeting to discuss the normalization of ties between Ankara and Damascus, Fidan remarked that the matter depends on political will, stressing that the Turkish president has demonstrated his readiness at the highest level.

Last week, Erdogan reiterated the possibility of a meeting with Assad, but Russia, which mediates the normalization talks between Ankara and Damascus, ruled out such a meeting or high-level engagements in the near future.

Russian Presidential Envoy to Syria Alexander Lavrentiev attributed the impasse to Türkiye’s refusal to meet Damascus’ demand for a withdrawal from northern Syria, accusing Ankara of acting as an “occupying state”.

Although Türkiye has not officially responded to Lavrentiev’s comments, which reflect a shift in Russia’s stance, Fidan stated in a televised interview last week that Russia remains “somewhat neutral” regarding the normalization process. He also urged the Syrian government to create conditions for the return of 10 million Syrian refugees.

Türkiye maintains that its military presence in northern Syria prevents the country’s division, blocks the establishment of a “terror corridor” along its southern border, and deters new waves of refugees from entering its territory.

Fidan outlined his country’s key objectives in Syria, which include eradicating terrorist groups (such as the Kurdistan Workers’ Party and the Syrian Democratic Forces), preserving Syria’s territorial unity, advancing the political process, and ensuring the safe and voluntary return of Syrian refugees.

Meanwhile, Turkish artillery targeted villages and positions controlled by the Manbij Military Council, affiliated with the Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), whose main component is the People’s Protection Units (YPG).

On Friday, fierce clashes erupted between the Syrian National Army factions and the SDF in western Tel Abyad, northern Raqqa. Simultaneously, Turkish artillery strikes reportedly killed two SDF members and injured others, with reports of captives and missing personnel.

In retaliation, the SDF shelled Turkish bases in the Ain Issa countryside. Turkish forces responded by deploying military reinforcements amid heightened alert at their bases in Raqqa’s countryside, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).