AU PSC: Morocco, under HM the king’s Leadership, Expresses Total Solidarity with Brotherly Sudan – FM –

The Kingdom of Morocco, under the leadership of HM King Mohammed VI, may God assist Him, expresses its total solidarity with brotherly Sudan in these difficult conditions and remains ready to provide the necessary and possible support to help it overcome this crisis, Minister of Foreign Affairs, African Cooperation and Moroccan Expatriates, Nasser Bourita, said on Saturday. Morocco, which has deep-rooted fraternal ties with the Republic of Sudan, is confident in the ability and wisdom of the Sudanese people and their various components to reach the necessary compromises to strengthen the foundations of a political process that preserves the security and stability of their country and meets their development needs, stressed the Minister, who was speaking at a meeting of the African Union Peace and Security Council, held by video conference at the level of Heads of State and Government, on the situation in Sudan. For Morocco, the first key to a political solution lies in building mutual trust between the brothers and initiating a fruitful dialogue to achieve a lasting peace that guarantees the brotherly Sudanese people security, stability and prosperity, insisted Bourita. In this context, the Kingdom of Morocco expresses its satisfaction with the fruitful steps taken by the conflicting parties at the Jeddah meetings with Saudi and American mediation to facilitate the delivery of relief aid to the Sudanese people, and with the ceasefire agreement of May 20, 2023, with the establishment of an international mechanism to monitor its observance, and “which we hope will enable the movement of civilians and the arrival of aid”, noted the Minister. The ceasefire agreement is a good, positive step that needs to be consolidated as a basis, the Minister added, stressing the need for intensified and coordinated diplomatic efforts by brotherly and friendly countries and international and regional organizations involved in supporting stability in Sudan to strengthen confidence-building measures and protect the potential of the Sudanese people. On this basis, it would be appropriate to examine the possibility of dispatching a mission from the Peace and Security Council to Sudan as soon as possible for discussions with the Sudanese parties on how to resolve this crisis, the Minister stressed. Today’s meeting of the African Union’s Peace and Security Council is a message of hope to the Sudanese people, showing that the African Union, which has been involved in the tripartite mechanism (the United Nations, the African Union and IGAD) to find a comprehensive and accepted solution to the Sudanese crisis since its inception, is continuing its good offices with the same determination to make peace in Sudan a living reality, said Bourita. Regarding the emergency de-escalation plan for the current crisis in Sudan, which is in line with paragraph 10 of the declaration of the extraordinary ministerial meeting on Sudan (April 20), the Kingdom of Morocco considers that this plan constitutes a platform for resolving the crisis, while taking into account the added value of the initiative of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United States of America and the positive results of the Jeddah process, as well as the efforts of the tripartite mechanism, while welcoming the desired complementarity between these initiatives, the Minister affirmed. Morocco calls for this crisis to be confined to the national Sudanese context, and for foreign intervention in the internal affairs of the united country to be prohibited, thus avoiding an escalation of the conflict and a threat to regional peace and security, reiterated the Minister, adding that the current stage calls for joint efforts to support brotherly Sudan and help it reach the expected political solution, which will enable the country to emerge from its current crisis and regain its role as a regional and continental player. In the beginning of his speech, the Minister deplored the loss of life and material damage caused by the clashes, calling for intensified good offices and efforts to support the peace process in Sudan and preserve its territorial integrity and national sovereignty in order to strengthen peace and stability in the region.