US-mediated ceasefire talks on Sudan were set to begin in Switzerland on Wednesday, despite the Sudanese government’s decision to abstain from participation.
Tom Perriello, the US Special Envoy for Sudan who organized the discussions, emphasized the urgency of moving forward, stating that the suffering of the Sudanese people, who have been devastated by the ongoing conflict, cannot be ignored any longer.
The war, which began in April 2023, pits the Sudanese army, led by the country’s de facto ruler Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, against the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF), commanded by his former deputy Mohamed Hamdan Daglo.
Although the RSF delegation has arrived in Switzerland for the closed-door talks at an undisclosed location, the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) have yet to agree to participate.
The negotiations, which could last up to 10 days, are being co-hosted by Saudi Arabia and Switzerland, with the African Union, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, and the United Nations attending as observers.
The conflict has led to one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises, displacing one in five people from their homes and causing tens of thousands of deaths. Over 25 million people across Sudan, more than half of the population, are now facing acute hunger.
“The time for peace is now,” Perriello said Tuesday.
“Thus far, SAF has not agreed to participate. Yet we will proceed with our international and technical partners to explore every option to support the people of Sudan,” he said, urging the government to “seize the opportunity”.
Previous rounds of talks in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, have failed to yield results. If the SAF does not participate this time, formal mediation between the warring factions will be impossible, but other participants will continue to pursue the agenda.
Perriello emphasized the “deep sense of urgency to make progress this week towards a cessation of hostilities and expanded humanitarian access,” along with measures to enforce agreements. “The Sudanese people cannot afford for us to wait,” he stated.
A member of the RSF delegation confirmed their presence in Switzerland ahead of the talks, saying, “Our delegation has arrived in Geneva to start negotiations; we don’t know anything about the army delegation,” they told AFP on Tuesday.
The Sudanese government has argued that more discussions are needed before joining the ceasefire talks. Sudan’s Media Minister, Graham Abdelkader, stated that they were rejecting “any new observers or participants,” particularly after Washington “insisted on the participation of the United Arab Emirates as an observer.”
The Sudanese army has repeatedly accused the UAE of supporting the RSF.
– Pressure on Burhan –
Alan Boswell, the Horn of Africa project director at the International Crisis Group, said Burhan was facing “serious internal divisions” on whether to attend, with some in his camp in favour of talks and others “fiercely opposed”.
“Restarting the talks at all would be a breakthrough, given that there have not been formal talks since last year,” he told AFP.
“The main difference from previous rounds is that the US is firmly in charge of the agenda and that all three of Saudi Arabia, UAE, and Egypt are all present as well. That puts all the main outside actors with leverage over the warring parties in one room together.”
He said if the government does not attend, Burhan would come under mounting external pressure if he is seen as “the main obstacle to ending the war”.
– ‘Enough is enough’ –
Sudan is suffering the world’s biggest displacement crisis. More than 10.7 million people are internally displaced within the country, while around 2.3 million more have fled abroad.
“What was once a land of rich culture, history, and hope has become a battlefield of despair, where millions of families are trapped in a living nightmare,” said Mohamed Refaat, the UN migration agency’s Sudan mission chief.
“Without a ceasefire… every day we delay, more lives are lost, more dreams are shattered, and more futures are stolen,” Refaat said, adding: “Enough is enough.”
James Elder, spokesman for the UN children’s agency UNICEF, said he had spoken to a surgeon operating on boys injured Saturday in the fatal shelling of a football field in Khartoum State.
“He said to me: If those people behind this war could just see these injuries, could see these children who have been killed, they would find a way to sit and talk.”
