Sudan deal encourages other Arab states to follow suit - analysis
Both Israel and Sudan have much to gain from this diplomatic breakthrough.
By JPOST EDITORIALThe head of Sudan's Transitional Military Council, Lieutenant General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, talks to Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed during the signing of a power sharing deal in Khartoum, Sudan, August 17, 2019(photo credit: REUTERS/ MOHAMED NURELDIN ABDALLAH)
We warmly welcome the announcement by the US on October 23 that Sudan would sign “a peace and normalization agreement” with Israel. Not only does this mean that three Arab countries have decided to establish diplomatic relations with Israel in just six weeks, it augurs well for other Arab states to follow suit – no matter who wins the November 3 presidential election in the US.The agreement is due to be signed in the next few days, ahead of the American election. US President Donald Trump undoubtedly hopes it will provide a boost to his chances of gaining Jewish votes. But Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to be commended for diplomatically sidestepping the president when challenged with the question, “You think sleepy Joe could have made this deal, Bibi?”Netanyahu understood instantly that Trump was referring to Democratic nominee Joe Biden. He prudently thanked Trump but said, “We appreciate the help for peace from anyone in America.”Both Israel and Sudan have much to gain from this diplomatic breakthrough. As The Jerusalem Post’s diplomatic correspondent, Lahav Harkov, noted, it is deeply symbolic because it was in Khartoum, the capital of Sudan, where the Arab League adopted its famous “three No’s” resolution in 1967 – No to peace with Israel, no to recognition of Israel and no to negotiations with Israel.Netanyahu correctly pointed out that “today Khartoum has said ‘Yes to peace with Israel, yes to recognition of Israel and yes to normalization with Israel.’”More recently, Harkov wrote, Sudan has served as a staging point for Iranian arms being dispatched to Hamas and Hezbollah, and that Israel even bombed Sudan to stop the weapons from reaching their destination.Last week, Khartoum took a step in the right direction by agreeing to pay $335 million in compensation to the American victims of the 1998 bombings of two US embassies in Africa, paving the way for the US to officially remove Sudan from its list of states sponsoring terrorism.Intelligence Minister Eli Cohen added that a peace accord with Sudan strikes a blow to Iran’s aspirations of regional hegemony. “Sudan is an important country in the region, having previously served as a way station for weapons between Iran and Gaza,” Cohen said. “Taking it off the US list of state sponsors of terrorism enables us to sign another agreement and to develop several important tracks of cooperation that will greatly contribute to Israel.”From Israel’s point of view, this is also an opportunity to discuss the repatriation of thousands of Sudanese migrants who have sought refuge here in recent years. But the two countries are also expected to negotiate several mutually beneficial cooperation agreements, including in agriculture and technology.The US and Israel have pledged to help bring both investment and debt relief to Sudan. Washington is offering a billion-dollar aid package, while Israel will provide agritech to help boost its dire economic situation. For its part, Sudan – Africa’s third-largest country – has huge swaths of arable land.
But on the flip side, there is concern that such a major foreign policy move at a time of deep economic crisis in Sudan could upset the delicate balance between the military and civilian authority, which is why Sudanese Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok is expected to push for his country’s transitional parliament to approve the deal first. The chairman of Sudan’s Sovereignty Council, Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, is scheduled to hand over control of the council to Hamdok in 2022.We should not ignore recent protests that have taken place in Khartoum against the normalization agreement with Israel, that have included the burning of Israeli flags. According to the Sudanese newspaper, Al-Intibaha, demonstrators chanted slogans against establishing relations and demanded that political parties who supported the step revise their position. At least two political factions in Sudan – the Popular Congress Party and the Sudanese Baath Party – issued statements condemning the decision to forge ties with Israel.As the US heads to a critical election next week, we urge the new administration – whether under Trump or Biden – to continue pursuing the path of peace between Israel and Arab states. Perhaps the UAE, Bahrain and now Sudan can help to get the Palestinian leadership back to the negotiating table with Israel.
