Mohammed Al-Minshawi-Washington
Sudan's efforts to exit the American list of terrorism have gained a lot of momentum since the overthrow of the Bashir regime, through mutual visits between Khartoum and Washington, including official American delegations, members of Congress, and senior Sudanese officials.
Despite these visits, Sudan remained on the US blacklist, and there has been no breakthrough on this issue so far.
Many experts attributed the meeting held by the President of the Sudanese Transitional Sovereign Council, General Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan, and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, in the Ugandan capital a few days ago, to Sudan’s aspiration to lift its name from the American list of terrorism.
What is the possibility of delisting?
In this regard, a US diplomat - who requested anonymity - told Al-Jazeera Net that it is "difficult to imagine that the prime minister of a country will visit Washington, and that the American foreign minister will contact the ruler of these countries if there is an intention to keep that country on the American terrorist list."
He added, "The president has the right to name a state sponsor of terrorism, and he can also remove and remove a country from the list."
However, a study by the Congressional Research Service also indicates that Congress has the right to "activate some legislations and laws that act as a barrier to the full authority of the president to remove a state from the terrorist list if the majority so desires."
Cameron Hudson, African Council expert for African affairs, sees an opportunity to talk about Sudan being removed from the list.
In a tweet, Hudson said, "This month's visit by Foreign Minister Pompeo to Saudi Arabia and Ethiopia is an opportunity to hear from Sudan's immediate neighbors about the developments in Sudan."
The US Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs, Tibor Nagy, had emphasized during Sudanese Prime Minister Abdullah Hamdock's visit to Washington that removing Sudan from the terrorist list "is not a decision but a process." This means that they are linked to the procedures and decisions that Washington expects from Khartoum.
Calls from Washington
Earlier, Washington invited Al-Burhan to make an official visit, in a first step in more than thirty years if it happened.
The call came during a telephone conversation between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Al-Burhan, which indicates an improvement in the relations between the two countries.
The American diplomat told Al-Jazeera Net that "there is a legacy in Washington in the issue of removing the name of Sudan from the list of terrorist countries, but recent developments - including Sudan's desire to normalize relations with Israel - may accelerate this step."
The diplomat stressed that "some Gulf countries - which have broad interests in Sudan like Saudi Arabia - are pressuring the White House to accelerate the removal of Sudan from the list, and undoubtedly the recent meeting between Al-Burhan and Netanyahu will facilitate the task of these pressures."
It is noteworthy that the United States included Sudan in 1993 in the list of countries sponsoring terrorism because of hosting the founder of al-Qaeda Osama bin Laden, who was resident in Sudan between 1992 and 1996, in addition to the Palestinian Abu Nidal organization.