Sudan is studying the project to establish a Russian military base
Sudanese Foreign Minister Maryam al-Mahdi announced that her country's parliament will once again study the agreement with Moscow on the establishment of a Russian naval base in Sudan, which was reached during the era of former President Omar al-Bashir.
Al-Mahdi confirmed during a visit to Moscow that this document was signed "by the former Sudanese government."
"We now have a government responsible to the new parliament, where this agreement will be studied," she said after meeting with her Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov.
That agreement was discussed in 2017 between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Omar al-Bashir, who was ousted in 2019 after months of popular protests.
Russia had announced that the agreement provided for the establishment of a naval military base in the strategic city of Port Sudan overlooking the Red Sea.
The agreement also allows the Russian Navy to keep up to four ships simultaneously at the base, including nuclear-powered ships.
The base can receive a maximum of 300 soldiers and civilians.
The agreement also states that Russia has the right to transfer through Sudan's ports and airports weapons, ammunition and equipment necessary for the operation of this naval base.
In early June, a high-ranking Sudanese military official confirmed that his country is in the process of reviewing the agreement with Russia to include clauses considered harmful.
Today, Monday, the Sudanese Minister of Foreign Affairs said that the evaluation of the agreement in the Legislative Council will be in accordance with Sudan's own interest and the strategic goals pursued by Russia and Sudan.
For many years, Sudan relied militarily on Russia, especially during the decades that witnessed US sanctions.
Since August 2019, the country has been run by a transitional government that seeks to end the international isolation that Khartoum has experienced for a long time due to its placement on the list of "state sponsors of terrorism" by the United States.
Last December, Washington removed Sudan from this list after relations between the two countries witnessed a remarkable improvement.
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