CAIRO (AP) – Sudan said on Wednesday that it signed an agreement with the United States that paves the way for the African nation without money to normalize relations with Israel and settle part of its huge debt with the World Bank.
Justice Minister Nasredeen Abdulbari signed the deal with US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, according to the prime minister’s office.
“This is a very, very significant agreement. It would have a tremendous impact on the people of Israel and the people of Sudan as they continue to work together on cultural and economic opportunities and trade,” said Mnuchin in comments made to the state – he addressed the SUNA news agency.
Abdulbari said that Sudan welcomed “the rapprochement that took place between Israel and the countries in the region, as well as the beginning of diplomatic relations, which we will work with, we will form on our side in the near future, to strengthen and expand them in the Sudan and in the interest of other countries in the region. “
Also during Mnuchin’s visit, the United States and Sudan signed a “memorandum of understanding” to facilitate the payment of the African country’s debt to the World Bank, said the Ministry of Finance, a move that is widely seen as a fundamental step towards economic recovery in Khartoum.
The ministry said the deal would allow Sudan to receive more than $ 1 billion annually from the World Bank for the first time in almost three decades, when the country was designated an outcast state.
Sudan has more than $ 60 billion in foreign debt.
On October 23, President Donald Trump announced Sudan it would become the third Arab state to normalize ties with Israel as part of a US-mediated agreement known as “Abraham’s Agreements” in honor of the biblical patriarch revered by Muslims and Jews.
After that, the North African nation agreed to put $ 335 million into a custody account to compensate American victims of terrorist attacks. This includes the 1998 attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania by the Al Qaeda network while its leader, Osama bin Laden, lived in Sudan. It is believed that the country also served as a pipeline for Iran to supply weapons to Palestinian militants in Gaza Strip.
In return, Trump notified Congress of his intention to remove Sudan from the United States’ list as sponsors of terrorism, a key incentive to the deal.
There was no immediate comment from Israel on Wednesday.
The Trump administration announced diplomatic pacts last year between Israel and the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain – the first since Jordan recognized Israel in the 1990s and Egypt in the 1970s. Morocco also established diplomatic relations with Israel. The agreements are all with countries that are geographically distant from Israel and have played a minor, if any, role in the Arab-Israeli conflict.
The agreements contributed to the severe isolation and weakening of the Palestinians, eroding a long-standing Arab consensus that Israel’s recognition should only be given in exchange for concessions in the peace process.
Although Sudan is not a regional power, establishing ties with Israel is deeply symbolic. Sudan hosted the Khartoum summit in 1967, at which Arab countries vowed never to make peace with Israel and, more recently, had close ties to Israeli enemies like Hamas and Hezbollah.
Sudan is on a fragile path to democracy after a popular uprising led the military to overthrow longtime autocrat Omar al-Bashir in April 2019. The county is now governed by a joint civil and military government that seeks better ties with Washington and the West.
During his visit, Mnuchin met with General Abdel-Fattah Burhan, head of the ruling sovereign council, and Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok.
It is the first visit by a US Treasury Chief to Sudan, the statement said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in August, he became the first US diplomat to visit Sudan since 2005, when Condoleezza Rice visited him.
The visit took place “at a time when our bilateral relations are making historic leaps towards a better future. We are planning to take tangible steps today, as our relationships enter a #NewEra, ”tweeted Hamdok.
The Ministry of Justice said last month that the US would give a $ 1 billion bridge loan to the World Bank on behalf of Sudan, in addition to $ 1.1 billion in direct and indirect US aid
Since the fall of al-Bashir, Sudan has been governed by a joint military and civilian government that seeks better ties with the West. It has struggled against a huge budget deficit and widespread shortage of essential goods, including fuel, bread and medicines.
Annual inflation has risen to over 200% in recent months, as prices for bread and other staple foods have risen, according to official data.
Mnuchin’s visit came amid growing tensions between the military and civilians of the Sudanese transitional government. These tensions, which have resurfaced in recent weeks, have largely focused on the military’s economic assets, on which the Ministry of Finance, run by civilians, it has no control.
John Prendergast, co-founder of the watchdog group The Sentry, said Mnuchin should press the military and security apparatus to allow “independent oversight” of the companies they control.
“As Secretary Mnuchin engages with the leadership in Khartoum, it is critical that he strongly support international standards to combat money laundering and fiscal transparency, which are essential for Sudan to contain the plunder of its national economy” , he said.
Mnuchin flew from Cairo to Sudan, where he met Egypt’s president, Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi, a close ally of the United States. The stops are part of a flurry of activity during the last days of the Trump administration.
Later, Mnuchin tweeted that he was going to Israel “for important meetings”.
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Associated Press writer Joe Federman in Jerusalem contributed.